eclesiásticovseclesiásticosTell them apart

Which to use

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

#20,339
“eclesiástico” frequency rank
#23,035
“eclesiásticos” frequency rank
43374
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature eclesiástico eclesiásticos
Definition Propio de o relativo a la iglesia Forma del plural de eclesiástico.

Where the eye mixes eclesiástico and eclesiásticos

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 12 letters in sequence. eclesiástico runs 12 letters (VCCVCVVCCVCV) against eclesiásticos's 13 (VCCVCVVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

12 ch
eclesiástico
13 ch
eclesiásticos

Look-alike desk: eclesiástico vs eclesiásticos

A purely visual mix-up. eclesiástico ([ekleˈsjast̪iko]) and eclesiásticos ([ekleˈsjast̪ikos]) 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 1 extra letter(s) - “eclesiástico” sits inside “eclesiásticos”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43374, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

eclesiástico is recorded at frequency rank #20,339, classified as anadj, pronounced [ekleˈsjast̪iko]. eclesiásticos is at rank #23,035, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ekleˈsjast̪ikos].

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 43374, this pair ranks #143,011 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of eclesiástico vs eclesiásticos

Shared letters: ceilostá. Private to "eclesiástico": -. Private to "eclesiásticos": -.

"eclesiástico" · 12 letters · shape VCCVCVVCCVCV  ·  "eclesiásticos" · 13 letters · shape VCCVCVVCCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "eclesiástico" for "eclesiásticos" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ekleˈsjast̪iko] versus [ekleˈsjast̪ikos]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "eclesiástico" vs "eclesiásticos" - which ranks higher?
"eclesiástico" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,339 in our Spanish list, against #23,035 for "eclesiásticos". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "eclesiástico" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "eclesiásticos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #143,011 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "eclesiástico" and "eclesiásticos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "eclesiásticas vs eclesiásticos". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #143,011 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