alcanzarvsalcanzasWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“alcanzar” and “alcanzas” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#1,835
“alcanzar” frequency rank
#48,186
“alcanzas” frequency rank
50021
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature alcanzar alcanzas
Definition Avanzar y llegar hasta algo o alguien que va adelante, física o figuradamente. Segunda persona del singular (tú) del presente de indicativo de alcanzar o de alcanzarse.

Where the eye mixes alcanzar and alcanzas

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. alcanzar and alcanzas follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
alcanzar
8 ch
alcanzas

Visual trap between alcanzar and alcanzas

A purely visual mix-up. alcanzar ([alkãnˈsaɾ]) and alcanzas ([alˈkãnsas]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by a single letter - r in “alcanzar” becomes s in “alcanzas”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50021, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

alcanzar is recorded at frequency rank #1,835, classified as averb, pronounced [alkãnˈsaɾ]. alcanzas is at rank #48,186, tagged as averb, pronounced [alˈkãnsas].

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 50021, this pair ranks #105,547 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of alcanzar vs alcanzas

Shared letters: aclnz. Private to "alcanzar": r. Private to "alcanzas": s.

"alcanzar" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "alcanzas" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • alcanzaraclanzar · alacnzar · alcanazr · alcannzar · alcanzarr · alcanzra · alcanzzar · alcaznar
  • alcanzasaclanzas · alacnzas · alcanazs · alcannzas · alcanzass · alcanzsa · alcanzzas · alcaznas

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "alcanzar" and "alcanzas" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([alkãnˈsaɾ] versus [alˈkãnsas]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "alcanzar" vs "alcanzas" - which ranks higher?
"alcanzar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,835 in our Spanish list, against #48,186 for "alcanzas". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "alcanzar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "alcanzas" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #105,547 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "alcanzar" and "alcanzas" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "alcanzadas vs alcanzas". 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 #105,547 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list