expulsadovsexpulsarWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#9,117
“expulsado” frequency rank
#12,382
“expulsar” frequency rank
21499
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature expulsado expulsar
Definition Participio de expulsar. Sacar algo y arrojarlo lejos o fuera del lugar.

Where the eye mixes expulsado and expulsar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. expulsado runs 9 letters (VCCVCCVCV) against expulsar's 8 (VCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
expulsado
8 ch
expulsar

Why the eye confuses expulsado with expulsar

A purely visual mix-up. expulsado ([ekspulˈsað̞o]) and expulsar ([ekspulˈsaɾ]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21499, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

expulsado is recorded at frequency rank #9,117, classified as averb, pronounced [ekspulˈsað̞o]. expulsar is at rank #12,382, tagged as averb, pronounced [ekspulˈsaɾ].

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 21499, this pair ranks #254,652 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of expulsado vs expulsar

Shared letters: aelpsux. Private to "expulsado": do. Private to "expulsar": r.

"expulsado" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCV  ·  "expulsar" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • expulsado ← epxulsado · explusado · exppulsado · expulasdo · expullsado · expulsaddo · expulsaod · expulsdao
  • expulsar ← epxulsar · explusar · exppulsar · expulasr · expullsar · expulsarr · expulsra · expulssar

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "expulsado" for "expulsar" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ekspulˈsað̞o] versus [ekspulˈsaɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "expulsado" or "expulsar"?
"expulsado" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,117 in our Spanish list, against #12,382 for "expulsar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "expulsado" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "expulsar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #254,652 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "expulsado" and "expulsar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "excusado vs expulsado". 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 #254,652 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