Which to use
“hilo” and “hole” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,789
- “hilo” frequency rank
- #30,943
- “hole” frequency rank
- 34732
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hilo | hole |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Fibra textil delgada, formada por pocas hebras, de largo variable. | Agujero, hoyo. |
Where the eye mixes hilo and hole
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses hilo with hole
A purely visual mix-up. hilo ([ˈilo]) and hole (/həʊl/) 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 34732, 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]. hole is at rank #30,943, tagged as anoun, pronounced /həʊl/.
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 34732, this pair ranks #189,857 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hilo vs hole
Shared letters: hlo. Private to "hilo": i. Private to "hole": e.
"hilo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "hole" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "hilo" and "hole" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "hilo" or "hole"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "hilo" and "hole" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "hilo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hole" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #189,857 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hilo" and "hole" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "holder vs hole". 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 #189,857 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.