Which to use
“élite” is a noun and “exime” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,247
- “élite” frequency rank
- #30,906
- “exime” frequency rank
- 38153
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | élite | exime |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Minoría selecta y rectora. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de eximir. |
Where the eye mixes élite and exime
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. élite and exime follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: élite vs exime
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: élite is [ˈelit̪e] while exime is [ekˈsime]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38153, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
élite is recorded at frequency rank #7,247, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈelit̪e]. exime is at rank #30,906, tagged as averb, pronounced [ekˈsime].
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 38153, this pair ranks #171,553 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of élite vs exime
Shared letters: ei. Private to "élite": lté. Private to "exime": mx.
"élite" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV · "exime" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- exime ← eixme · exiem · eximme · exmie · exxime · xeime
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "élite" for "exime" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "élite" or "exime" show up more?
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 "élite" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "exime" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #171,553 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "élite" and "exime" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "exime vs exit". 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 #171,553 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.