Which to use
“tirar” and “tocar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,521
- “tirar” frequency rank
- #2,138
- “tocar” frequency rank
- 5659
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tirar | tocar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Traer un objeto, asiéndolo y ejerciendo fuerza hacia el lado propio. | Percibir las cualidades de un objeto mediante el sentido del tacto. |
Where the eye mixes tirar and tocar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between tirar and tocar
A purely visual mix-up. tirar ([t̪iˈɾaɾ]) and tocar ([t̪oˈkaɾ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5659, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tirar is recorded at frequency rank #3,521, classified as averb, pronounced [t̪iˈɾaɾ]. tocar is at rank #2,138, tagged as averb, pronounced [t̪oˈkaɾ].
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 5659, this pair ranks #313,031 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of tirar vs tocar
Shared letters: art. Private to "tirar": i. Private to "tocar": co.
"tirar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "tocar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tirar" and "tocar" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "tirar" or "tocar"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "tirar" and "tocar" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "tirar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tocar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #313,031 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tirar" and "tocar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Tirana vs tirar". 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 #313,031 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.