algavsalgasWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#34,872
“alga” frequency rank
#15,002
“algas” frequency rank
49874
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature alga algas
Definition Organismo acuático autótrofo —es decir, capaz de fotosíntesis—, sea procarionte o eucarionte. No forman un grupo taxonómico homogéneo, comprendiendo desde organismos unicelulares muy sencillos hasta enormes colonias de decenas de metros de longitud. Se clasifican en al menos nueve filos, de uno de los cuales proceden evolutivamente las plantas propiamente dichas. Forma del plural de alga.

Where the eye mixes alga and algas

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. alga runs 4 letters (VCCV) against algas's 5 (VCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

4 ch
alga
5 ch
algas

Why the eye confuses alga with algas

A purely visual mix-up. alga ([ˈalɣ̞a]) and algas ([ˈalɣ̞as]) 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 1 extra letter(s) - “alga” sits inside “algas”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49874, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

alga is recorded at frequency rank #34,872, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈalɣ̞a]. algas is at rank #15,002, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈalɣ̞as].

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 49874, this pair ranks #106,370 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of alga vs algas

Shared letters: agl. Private to "alga": -. Private to "algas": s.

"alga" · 4 letters · shape VCCV  ·  "algas" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • alga ← alag · algga · allga · laga
  • algas ← aglas · alags · algass · alggas · algsa · allgas · lagas

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "alga" and "algas" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈalɣ̞a] versus [ˈalɣ̞as]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "alga" vs "algas" - which ranks higher?
"algas" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,002 in our Spanish list, against #34,872 for "alga". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "alga" and "algas" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "alga" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "algas" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #106,370 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "alga" and "algas" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "alga vs anta". 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 #106,370 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