espadasvsespaldaTell them apart

Which to use

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

#10,497
“espadas” frequency rank
#1,985
“espalda” frequency rank
12482
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature espadas espalda
Definition En el juego de naipes con baraja española, nombre del palo que contiene representaciones de espadas. Parte posterior del cuerpo humano que va de la base del cuello y hombros al trasero. Está opuesta al pecho y su altura viene dada por la columna vertebral o espinal dorsal. Su anchura va en función de la caja torácica y los hombros.

Where the eye mixes espadas and espalda

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

7 ch
espadas
7 ch
espalda

Visual trap between espadas and espalda

A purely visual mix-up. espadas ([esˈpað̞as]) and espalda ([esˈpal̪d̪a]) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12482, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

espadas is recorded at frequency rank #10,497, classified as anoun, pronounced [esˈpað̞as]. espalda is at rank #1,985, tagged as anoun, pronounced [esˈpal̪d̪a].

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 12482, this pair ranks #291,396 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of espadas vs espalda

Shared letters: adeps. Private to "espadas": -. Private to "espalda": l.

"espadas" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "espalda" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • espadasepsadas · esapdas · espaads · espadass · espaddas · espadsa · espdaas · esppadas
  • espaldaepsalda · esaplda · espadla · espalad · espaldda · espallda · esplada · esppalda

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "espadas" and "espalda" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([esˈpað̞as] versus [esˈpal̪d̪a]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "espadas" or "espalda"?
"espalda" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,985 in our Spanish list, against #10,497 for "espadas". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "espadas" and "espalda" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "espadas" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "espalda" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #291,396 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "espadas" and "espalda" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "espadas vs estacas". 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 #291,396 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