a contrapelo

[a kõn̪t̪ɾaˈpelo]

/[a kõn̪t̪ɾaˈpelo]/ phrase

The verdict

“a contrapelo” is uncommon Spanish (outside the top frequency list), classed as a phrase. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency Spanish
12
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - En la dirección opuesta a la del crecimiento natural del pelo.

Corpus desk

Index ES-a-contrapelo · a contrapelo · Spanish

a contrapelo · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "A" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for a contrapelo
PropertyValue
Headworda contrapelo
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechPhrase
IPA[a kõn̪t̪ɾaˈpelo]
Letters12
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Cola larga: rango de “a contrapelo” en español

a contrapeloqueda fuera de las 100.000 palabras españolas más frecuentes, en la cola larga de vocabulario técnico, arcaico o raro, justo donde más se duda de la ortografía.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

a contrapelo is uncommon Spanish outside the top frequency list, classed as aphrase, transcribed [a kõn̪t̪ɾaˈpelo]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for a contrapelo, suggesting the orthography follows predictable Spanish patterns. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct Spanish form is a contrapelo, spelled A- -C-O-N-T-R-A-P-E-L-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    En la dirección opuesta a la del crecimiento natural del pelo.
  2. 2
    En dirección opuesta a la dirección natural o acostumbrada.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "a contrapelo"?
"a contrapelo" is spelled A- -C-O-N-T-R-A-P-E-L-O. The IPA pronunciation is [a kõn̪t̪ɾaˈpelo].
What does "a contrapelo" mean?
As a phrase, "a contrapelo" means: En la dirección opuesta a la del crecimiento natural del pelo.
How do you pronounce "a contrapelo"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "a contrapelo" is [a kõn̪t̪ɾaˈpelo]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "a contrapelo" come from?
"a contrapelo" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list