Which to use
“cártel” and “cárteles” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,657
- “cártel” frequency rank
- #29,146
- “cárteles” frequency rank
- 46803
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cártel | cárteles |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Organización de tráfico de estupefacientes | Forma del plural de cártel. |
Where the eye mixes cártel and cárteles
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. cártel runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against cárteles's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: cártel vs cárteles
A purely visual mix-up. cártel ([ˈkaɾt̪el]) and cárteles ([ˈkaɾt̪eles]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “cártel” sits inside “cárteles”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46803, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cártel is recorded at frequency rank #17,657, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkaɾt̪el]. cárteles is at rank #29,146, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkaɾt̪eles].
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 46803, this pair ranks #123,628 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cártel vs cárteles
Shared letters: celrtá. Private to "cártel": -. Private to "cárteles": s.
"cártel" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "cárteles" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cártel" for "cárteles" ever safe?
Which is more common, "cártel" or "cárteles"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "cártel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cárteles" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #123,628 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cártel" and "cárteles" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "carnales vs cárteles". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #123,628 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.