Which to use
“adicto” and “adulto” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,157
- “adicto” frequency rank
- #5,062
- “adulto” frequency rank
- 16219
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | adicto | adulto |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Se dice del seguidor de una tradición o costumbre. | Dicho de una persona: que llegó a su pleno crecimiento o desarrollo. |
Where the eye mixes adicto and adulto
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. adicto and adulto follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCVCCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses adicto with adulto
A purely visual mix-up. adicto ([aˈð̞ikt̪o]) and adulto ([aˈð̞ul̪t̪o]) 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 16219, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
adicto is recorded at frequency rank #11,157, classified as anadj, pronounced [aˈð̞ikt̪o]. adulto is at rank #5,062, tagged as anadj, pronounced [aˈð̞ul̪t̪o].
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 16219, this pair ranks #277,033 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of adicto vs adulto
Shared letters: adot. Private to "adicto": ci. Private to "adulto": lu.
"adicto" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCV · "adulto" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "adicto" and "adulto" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "adicto" or "adulto" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "adicto" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "adulto" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #277,033 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "adicto" and "adulto" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "adultez vs adulto". 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 #277,033 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.