Which to use
“estaño” is a noun and “extraño” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #25,629
- “estaño” frequency rank
- #1,289
- “extraño” frequency rank
- 26918
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | estaño | extraño |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Elemento químico metálico, cuyo número atómico es el 50 y que está situado en el grupo 14 de la tabla periódica de los elementos, con el símbolo Sn. | Dicho de una persona, que es ajeno a nuestra familia, grupo social, nación. |
Where the eye mixes estaño and extraño
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. estaño runs 6 letters (VCCVCV) against extraño's 7 (VCCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between estaño and extraño
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: estaño is [esˈt̪aɲo] while extraño is [eksˈt̪ɾaɲo]. 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 (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26918, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
estaño is recorded at frequency rank #25,629, classified as anoun, pronounced [esˈt̪aɲo]. extraño is at rank #1,289, tagged as anadj, pronounced [eksˈt̪ɾaɲo].
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 26918, this pair ranks #229,323 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of estaño vs extraño
Shared letters: aeotñ. Private to "estaño": s. Private to "extraño": rx.
"estaño" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV · "extraño" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "estaño" for "extraño" ever safe?
Which is more common, "estaño" or "extraño"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "estaño" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "extraño" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #229,323 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "estaño" and "extraño" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "estanca vs estaño". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #229,323 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.