Which to use
“chavo” and “clave” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,376
- “chavo” frequency rank
- #1,401
- “clave” frequency rank
- 18777
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | chavo | clave |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Ser humano de corta edad, en especial el que no ha llegado a la pubertad. | Explicación de los signos convenidos para escribir en cifra, o de cualesquiera otros distintos de los conocidos o usuales. |
Where the eye mixes chavo and clave
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between chavo and clave
A purely visual mix-up. chavo ([ˈt͡ʃaβ̞o]) and clave ([ˈklaβ̞e]) 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 18777, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
chavo is recorded at frequency rank #17,376, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈt͡ʃaβ̞o]. clave is at rank #1,401, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈklaβ̞e].
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 18777, this pair ranks #266,519 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of chavo vs clave
Shared letters: acv. Private to "chavo": ho. Private to "clave": el.
"chavo" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "clave" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "chavo" and "clave" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "chavo" or "clave"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "chavo" and "clave" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "chavo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clave" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #266,519 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "chavo" and "clave" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Chasco vs chavo". 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 #266,519 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.