esfuerzovsesfuerzosWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#1,167
“esfuerzo” frequency rank
#2,447
“esfuerzos” frequency rank
3614
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature esfuerzo esfuerzos
Definition Empleo de la fuerza física o mental para hacer algo. Forma del plural de esfuerzo.

Where the eye mixes esfuerzo and esfuerzos

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. esfuerzo runs 8 letters (VCCVVCCV) against esfuerzos's 9 (VCCVVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
esfuerzo
9 ch
esfuerzos

Visual trap between esfuerzo and esfuerzos

A purely visual mix-up. esfuerzo ([esˈfweɾso]) and esfuerzos ([esˈfweɾsos]) 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) - “esfuerzo” sits inside “esfuerzos”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3614, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

esfuerzo is recorded at frequency rank #1,167, classified as anoun, pronounced [esˈfweɾso]. esfuerzos is at rank #2,447, tagged as anoun, pronounced [esˈfweɾsos].

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 3614, this pair ranks #317,936 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of esfuerzo vs esfuerzos

Shared letters: eforsuz. Private to "esfuerzo": -. Private to "esfuerzos": -.

"esfuerzo" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCCV  ·  "esfuerzos" · 9 letters · shape VCCVVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • esfuerzo ← efsuerzo · esfeurzo · esffuerzo · esfueroz · esfuerrzo · esfuerzzo · esfuezro · esfurezo
  • esfuerzos ← efsuerzos · esfeurzos · esffuerzos · esfuerozs · esfuerrzos · esfuerzoss · esfuerzso · esfuerzzos

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "esfuerzo" for "esfuerzos" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([esˈfweɾso] versus [esˈfweɾsos]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "esfuerzo" or "esfuerzos" show up more?
"esfuerzo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,167 in our Spanish list, against #2,447 for "esfuerzos". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "esfuerzo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "esfuerzos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #317,936 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "esfuerzo" and "esfuerzos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "esforzó vs esfuerzo". 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 #317,936 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