extrañovsextremoTell them apart

Which to use

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

#1,289
“extraño” frequency rank
#2,397
“extremo” frequency rank
3686
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature extraño extremo
Definition Dicho de una persona, que es ajeno a nuestra familia, grupo social, nación. Superlativo irregular de exterior: sumamente exterior.

Where the eye mixes extraño and extremo

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
extraño
7 ch
extremo

Why the eye confuses extraño with extremo

A purely visual mix-up. extraño ([eksˈt̪ɾaɲo]) and extremo ([eksˈt̪ɾemo]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3686, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

extraño is recorded at frequency rank #1,289, classified as anadj, pronounced [eksˈt̪ɾaɲo]. extremo is at rank #2,397, tagged as anadj, pronounced [eksˈt̪ɾemo].

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 3686, this pair ranks #317,779 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of extraño vs extremo

Shared letters: eortx. Private to "extraño": . Private to "extremo": m.

"extraño" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV  ·  "extremo" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • extremoetxremo · exrtemo · extermo · extremmo · extreom · extrmeo · extrremo · exttremo

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "extraño" and "extremo" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([eksˈt̪ɾaɲo] versus [eksˈt̪ɾemo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "extraño" vs "extremo" - which ranks higher?
"extraño" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,289 in our Spanish list, against #2,397 for "extremo". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "extraño" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "extremo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #317,779 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "extraño" and "extremo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "extrajo vs extremo". 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 #317,779 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