Which to use
“gentil” and “gentiles” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,346
- “gentil” frequency rank
- #31,367
- “gentiles” frequency rank
- 47713
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gentil | gentiles |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Propio de, relativo o perteneciente a un grupo de gentes distinto del del hablante. | Forma del plural de gentil. |
Where the eye mixes gentil and gentiles
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. gentil runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against gentiles's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses gentil with gentiles
A purely visual mix-up. gentil ([xẽn̪ˈt̪il]) and gentiles ([xẽn̪ˈt̪iles]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “gentil” sits inside “gentiles”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47713, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gentil is recorded at frequency rank #16,346, classified as anadj, pronounced [xẽn̪ˈt̪il]. gentiles is at rank #31,367, tagged as anadj, pronounced [xẽn̪ˈt̪iles].
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 47713, this pair ranks #118,536 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of gentil vs gentiles
Shared letters: egilnt. Private to "gentil": -. Private to "gentiles": s.
"gentil" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "gentiles" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "gentil" for "gentiles" ever safe?
Frequency check: "gentil" vs "gentiles" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "gentil" and "gentiles" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "gentil" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gentiles" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #118,536 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gentil" and "gentiles" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Genil vs gentil". 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 #118,536 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.