Which to use
“caoba” and “chota” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #36,450
- “caoba” frequency rank
- #16,038
- “chota” frequency rank
- 52488
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | caoba | chota |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (género Swietenia) Árbol de la familia Meliaceae, natural de América, de hasta 20 metros de altura, tronco corpulento y recto del que brotan a cierta altura un gran número de ramas, hojas compuestas, flores pequeñas y blancas, y fruto capsular. Su madera es muy estimada. | Pene. |
Where the eye mixes caoba and chota
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. caoba (CVVCV) and chota (CCVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between caoba and chota
A purely visual mix-up. caoba ([kaˈoβ̞a]) and chota ([ˈt͡ʃot̪a]) 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 52488, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
caoba is recorded at frequency rank #36,450, classified as anoun, pronounced [kaˈoβ̞a]. chota is at rank #16,038, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈt͡ʃot̪a].
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 52488, this pair ranks #92,444 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of caoba vs chota
Shared letters: aco. Private to "caoba": b. Private to "chota": ht.
"caoba" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV · "chota" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "caoba" for "chota" ever safe?
Frequency check: "caoba" vs "chota" - 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 "caoba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "chota" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #92,444 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "caoba" and "chota" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "caoba vs ceba". 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 #92,444 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.