únicavsuniríaWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: única is a adjective, uniría is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“única” is an adjective and “uniría” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#599
“única” frequency rank
#39,004
“uniría” frequency rank
39603
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature única uniría
Definition Forma del femenino singular de único. Primera persona del singular (yo) del condicional de unir o de unirse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set única and uniría apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
única
6 ch
uniría

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: única is [ˈunika] while uniría is [uniˈɾia]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39603, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

única is recorded at frequency rank #599, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈunika]. uniría is at rank #39,004, tagged as averb, pronounced [uniˈɾia].

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 39603, this pair ranks #163,634 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of única vs uniría

Shared letters: ain. Private to "única": . Private to "uniría": ruí.

"única" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV  ·  "uniría" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVV

Frequency comparison

única#599
uniría#39,004

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "única" and "uniría" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "única" is an adjective and "uniría" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "única" or "uniría"?
"única" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #599 in our Spanish list, against #39,004 for "uniría". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering única vs uniría

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “única”; for a verb, it's “uniría”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “única” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list