Which to use
“bombilla” and “boquilla” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,912
- “bombilla” frequency rank
- #35,385
- “boquilla” frequency rank
- 57297
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bombilla | boquilla |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dispositivo eléctrico formado por un filamento de vanadio u otro metal en un recipiente vacío o lleno de un gas inerte, a través del cual se hace pasar corriente eléctrica para iluminar por incandescencia. | Pieza pequeña, hueca y en general cónica, de metal, marfil o madera, que se adapta al tubo de varios instrumentos de viento y sirve para producir el sonido, apoyando los labios en los bordes de ella. |
Where the eye mixes bombilla and boquilla
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. bombilla (CVCCVCCV) and boquilla (CVCVVCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between bombilla and boquilla
A purely visual mix-up. bombilla ([bõmˈbiʝa]) and boquilla ([boˈkiʝa]) 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 57297, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bombilla is recorded at frequency rank #21,912, classified as anoun, pronounced [bõmˈbiʝa]. boquilla is at rank #35,385, tagged as anoun, pronounced [boˈkiʝa].
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 57297, this pair ranks #71,061 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of bombilla vs boquilla
Shared letters: abilo. Private to "bombilla": m. Private to "boquilla": qu.
"bombilla" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV · "boquilla" · 8 letters · shape CVCVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "bombilla" and "boquilla" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "bombilla" or "boquilla" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "bombilla" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "boquilla" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #71,061 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bombilla" and "boquilla" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bombilla vs bombillas". 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 #71,061 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.