Which to use
“cortados” is a participle and “costado” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,955
- “cortados” frequency rank
- #4,694
- “costado” frequency rank
- 26649
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cortados | costado |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Forma del plural de cortado, participio de cortar o de cortarse. | Cada una de las dos partes laterales del cuerpo humano, a la izquierda y la derecha, entre el pecho y la espalda, desde el hombro hasta la cadera. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cortados and costado apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cortados is [koɾˈt̪að̞os] while costado is [kosˈt̪að̞o]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (participle vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26649, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cortados is recorded at frequency rank #21,955, classified as aparticiple, pronounced [koɾˈt̪að̞os]. costado is at rank #4,694, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kosˈt̪að̞o].
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 26649, this pair ranks #230,619 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cortados vs costado
Shared letters: acdost. Private to "cortados": r. Private to "costado": -.
"cortados" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC · "costado" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cortados" and "costado" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "cortados" or "costado"?
Remembering cortados vs costado
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a participle, it's “cortados”; for a noun, it's “costado”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cortados” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable