Which to use
“hilo” is a noun and “hirió” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,789
- “hilo” frequency rank
- #20,068
- “hirió” frequency rank
- 23857
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hilo | hirió |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Fibra textil delgada, formada por pocas hebras, de largo variable. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de herir. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hilo and hirió apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hilo is [ˈilo] while hirió is [iˈɾjo]. 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 verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23857, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hilo is recorded at frequency rank #3,789, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈilo]. hirió is at rank #20,068, tagged as averb, pronounced [iˈɾjo].
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 23857, this pair ranks #243,846 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hilo vs hirió
Shared letters: hi. Private to "hilo": lo. Private to "hirió": ró.
"hilo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "hirió" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- hilo ← hhilo · hillo · hiol · hlio · ihlo
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "hilo" and "hirió" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "hilo" or "hirió"?
Remembering hilo vs hirió
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “hilo”; for a verb, it's “hirió”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hilo” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable