sílaba

[ˈsilaβ̞a]

/[ˈsilaβ̞a]/ noun

The verdict

“sílaba” is a moderately-common Spanish word, ranked #27,792 in Spanish word frequency and used as a noun.

#27,792
frequency rank, Spanish
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
18
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Unidad fonológica que consta de uno o más sonidos pronunciados con un solo golpe de voz (o espiración) y agrupados alrededor del más sonoro, que comúnmente es una vocal.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

sílaba vs silla
50% similar
sílaba vs Silva
33% similar
sílaba vs Silas
33% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for sílaba
PropertyValue
Headwordsílaba
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈsilaβ̞a]
Letters6
Frequency rank#27,792
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs18
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sílaba” sits in Spanish frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). sílaba lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The Spanish entry for sílaba is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈsilaβ̞a]. Corpus data places it at rank #27,792 in overall Spanish word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Unidad fonológica que consta de uno o más sonidos pronunciados con un solo golpe de voz (o espiración) y agrupados alrededor del más sonoro, que comúnmente es una vocal.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for sílaba, with forms such as "slíaba", "ssílaba", and "síalba". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 18 confusable-pair relationships, "silla", "Silva", "Silas", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct Spanish form is sílaba, spelled S-Í-L-A-B-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    Unidad fonológica que consta de uno o más sonidos pronunciados con un solo golpe de voz (o espiración) y agrupados alrededor del más sonoro, que comúnmente es una vocal.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: slíaba,ssílaba,síalba,sílaab,sílabba,sílava,sílbaa,síllaba,íslaba

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sílaba - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

slíaba2ssílaba1síalba2sílaab2sílabba1sílava1sílbaa2síllaba1
Edit distance from "sílaba"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 Spanish corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "sílaba"?
"sílaba" is spelled S-Í-L-A-B-A. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈsilaβ̞a].
What does "sílaba" mean?
As a noun, "sílaba" means: Unidad fonológica que consta de uno o más sonidos pronunciados con un solo golpe de voz (o espiración) y agrupados alrededor del más sonoro, que comúnmente es una vocal.
What words are commonly confused with "sílaba"?
"sílaba" is commonly confused with "silla", "Silva", "Silas". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sílaba"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sílaba" is [ˈsilaβ̞a]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "sílaba" come from?
"sílaba" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

Using “sílaba”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct Spanish spelling is S-Í-L-A-B-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈsilaβ̞a] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “silla” - see the side-by-side comparison. sílaba vs silla
  • Browse more Spanish words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Spanish words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

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