Which to use
“alejar” and “apelar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,531
- “alejar” frequency rank
- #14,509
- “apelar” frequency rank
- 30040
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | alejar | apelar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Poner o llevar lejos o a mayor distancia. | Protestar una decisión ante un tercero. |
Where the eye mixes alejar and apelar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses alejar with apelar
A purely visual mix-up. alejar ([aleˈxaɾ]) and apelar ([apeˈlaɾ]) 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 30040, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
alejar is recorded at frequency rank #15,531, classified as averb, pronounced [aleˈxaɾ]. apelar is at rank #14,509, tagged as averb, pronounced [apeˈlaɾ].
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 30040, this pair ranks #213,953 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of alejar vs apelar
Shared letters: aelr. Private to "alejar": j. Private to "apelar": p.
"alejar" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC · "apelar" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "alejar" and "apelar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "alejar" or "apelar"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "alejar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "apelar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #213,953 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "alejar" and "apelar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "afilar vs apelar". 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 #213,953 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.