causovscruzoConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#31,256
“causo” frequency rank
#24,450
“cruzo” frequency rank
55706
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature causo cruzo
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de causar. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de cruzar.

Where the eye mixes causo and cruzo

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. causo (CVVCV) and cruzo (CCVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

5 ch
causo
5 ch
cruzo

Visual trap between causo and cruzo

A purely visual mix-up. causo ([ˈkawso]) and cruzo ([ˈkɾuso]) 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 55706, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

causo is recorded at frequency rank #31,256, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkawso]. cruzo is at rank #24,450, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkɾuso].

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 55706, this pair ranks #77,724 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of causo vs cruzo

Shared letters: cou. Private to "causo": as. Private to "cruzo": rz.

"causo" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV  ·  "cruzo" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • causo ← casuo · cauos · causso · ccauso · cuaso
  • cruzo ← ccruzo · crruzo · cruoz · cruzzo · crzuo · curzo · rcuzo

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "causo" and "cruzo" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkawso] versus [ˈkɾuso]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "causo" or "cruzo" show up more?
"cruzo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,450 in our Spanish list, against #31,256 for "causo". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "causo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "cruzo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #77,724 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "causo" and "cruzo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "causo vs curo". 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 #77,724 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