basvsbusTell them apart

Quick tell: bas is a adjective, bus is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“bas” is an adjective and “bus” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#25,153
“bas” frequency rank
#4,683
“bus” frequency rank
29836
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bas bus
Definition Bajo. Vehículo automotor para pasajeros de gran capacidad y recorrido fijo dentro de una urbe.

Where the eye mixes bas and bus

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

3 ch
bas
3 ch
bus

Why the eye confuses bas with bus

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: bas is /bɑ/ while bus is [ˈbus]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - a in “bas” becomes u in “bus”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29836, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bas is recorded at frequency rank #25,153, classified as anadj, pronounced /bɑ/. bus is at rank #4,683, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈbus].

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 29836, this pair ranks #215,032 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of bas vs bus

Shared letters: bs. Private to "bas": a. Private to "bus": u.

"bas" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "bus" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "bas" for "bus" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "bas" is an adjective and "bus" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "bas" or "bus"?
"bus" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,683 in our Spanish list, against #25,153 for "bas". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "bas" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "bus" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #215,032 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "bas" and "bus" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bane vs bas". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #215,032 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