Which to use
“retrasa” and “retrasar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #28,549
- “retrasa” frequency rank
- #17,808
- “retrasar” frequency rank
- 46357
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | retrasa | retrasar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de retrasar. | Hacer que algo llegue o suceda más tarde del tiempo debido o acordado. |
Where the eye mixes retrasa and retrasar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. retrasa runs 7 letters (CVCCVCV) against retrasar's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between retrasa and retrasar
A purely visual mix-up. retrasa ([reˈt̪ɾasa]) and retrasar ([ret̪ɾaˈsaɾ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “retrasa” sits inside “retrasar”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46357, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
retrasa is recorded at frequency rank #28,549, classified as averb, pronounced [reˈt̪ɾasa]. retrasar is at rank #17,808, tagged as averb, pronounced [ret̪ɾaˈsaɾ].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 46357, this pair ranks #126,196 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of retrasa vs retrasar
Shared letters: aerst. Private to "retrasa": -. Private to "retrasar": -.
"retrasa" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "retrasar" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "retrasa" and "retrasar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "retrasa" or "retrasar" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "retrasa" and "retrasar" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "retrasa" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "retrasar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #126,196 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "retrasa" and "retrasar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "retrasa vs retrasan". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #126,196 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.