labsvslossConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#36,642
“labs” frequency rank
#38,222
“loss” frequency rank
74864
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature labs loss
Definition Forma del plural de lab. Pérdida.

Where the eye mixes labs and loss

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. labs and loss follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

4 ch
labs
4 ch
loss

Why the eye confuses labs with loss

A purely visual mix-up. labs (/læbz/) and loss (/lɒs/) 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 74864, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

labs is recorded at frequency rank #36,642, classified as anoun, pronounced /læbz/. loss is at rank #38,222, tagged as anoun, pronounced /lɒs/.

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 74864, this pair ranks #20,587 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of labs vs loss

Shared letters: ls. Private to "labs": ab. Private to "loss": o.

"labs" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "loss" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • labs ← albs · labbs · labss · lasb · lavs · llabs
  • loss ← lloss · lsos · olss

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "labs" for "loss" ever safe?
No. They are said differently (/læbz/ versus /lɒs/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "labs" or "loss"?
"labs" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #36,642 in our Spanish list, against #38,222 for "loss". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "labs" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "loss" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #20,587 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "labs" and "loss" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lies vs loss". 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 #20,587 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