Which to use
“ilo” and “isla” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #43,641
- “ilo” frequency rank
- #939
- “isla” frequency rank
- 44580
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ilo | isla |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Herramienta | Territorio rodeado completamente por agua. |
Where the eye mixes ilo and isla
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ilo with isla
A purely visual mix-up. ilo (/ˈilo/) and isla ([ˈisla]) 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 44580, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ilo is recorded at frequency rank #43,641, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈilo/. isla is at rank #939, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈisla].
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 44580, this pair ranks #136,257 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ilo vs isla
Shared letters: il. Private to "ilo": o. Private to "isla": as.
"ilo" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "isla" · 4 letters · shape VCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- isla ← ilsa · isal · islla · issla
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ilo" for "isla" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ilo" or "isla"?
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 "ilo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "isla" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #136,257 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ilo" and "isla" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ilo vs iza". 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 #136,257 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.