Which to use
“anciano” is an adjective and “anclado” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,979
- “anciano” frequency rank
- #32,493
- “anclado” frequency rank
- 39472
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anciano | anclado |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Se dice de la persona que tiene mucha edad. | Participio de anclar. |
Where the eye mixes anciano and anclado
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. anciano (VCCVVCV) and anclado (VCCCVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between anciano and anclado
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: anciano is [ãnˈsjano] while anclado is [ãŋˈklað̞o]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39472, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anciano is recorded at frequency rank #6,979, classified as anadj, pronounced [ãnˈsjano]. anclado is at rank #32,493, tagged as averb, pronounced [ãŋˈklað̞o].
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 39472, this pair ranks #164,286 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of anciano vs anclado
Shared letters: acno. Private to "anciano": i. Private to "anclado": dl.
"anciano" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVCV · "anclado" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "anciano" for "anclado" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "anciano" or "anclado" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "anciano" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "anclado" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #164,286 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anciano" and "anclado" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anclado vs anulando". 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 #164,286 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.