Which to use
“bastos” and “bates” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #32,518
- “bastos” frequency rank
- #23,320
- “bates” frequency rank
- 55838
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bastos | bates |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | En la baraja española, uno de los cuatro palos, representado por varas o bastones nudosos. | Forma del plural de bate. |
Where the eye mixes bastos and bates
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses bastos with bates
A purely visual mix-up. bastos ([ˈbast̪os]) and bates ([ˈbat̪es]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55838, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bastos is recorded at frequency rank #32,518, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈbast̪os]. bates is at rank #23,320, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈbat̪es].
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 55838, this pair ranks #77,112 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of bastos vs bates
Shared letters: abst. Private to "bastos": o. Private to "bates": e.
"bastos" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "bates" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bastos" and "bates" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "bastos" vs "bates" - which ranks higher?
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 "bastos" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bates" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #77,112 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bastos" and "bates" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bardos vs bastos". 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 #77,112 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.