caladovscalcoWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#17,887
“calado” frequency rank
#46,977
“calco” frequency rank
64864
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature calado calco
Definition Labor que se hace con aguja de coser o bordar en alguna tela, sacando o juntando hilos, con que se imita la randa o encaje. Acción y efecto de calcar

Where the eye mixes calado and calco

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. calado runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against calco's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
calado
5 ch
calco

Why the eye confuses calado with calco

A purely visual mix-up. calado ([kaˈlað̞o]) and calco ([ˈkalko]) 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 64864, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

calado is recorded at frequency rank #17,887, classified as anoun, pronounced [kaˈlað̞o]. calco is at rank #46,977, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkalko].

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 64864, this pair ranks #44,336 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of calado vs calco

Shared letters: aclo. Private to "calado": d. Private to "calco": -.

"calado" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "calco" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • calado ← aclado · caaldo · caladdo · calaod · caldao · ccalado · claado
  • calco ← aclco · caclo · calcco · callco · caloc · ccalco · claco

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "calado" and "calco" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kaˈlað̞o] versus [ˈkalko]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "calado" or "calco"?
"calado" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,887 in our Spanish list, against #46,977 for "calco". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "calado" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "calco" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #44,336 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "calado" and "calco" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "calco vs Chasco". 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 #44,336 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