lacvsleaWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: lac is a noun, lea is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“lac” is a noun and “lea” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#48,497
“lac” frequency rank
#5,323
“lea” frequency rank
53820
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lac lea
Definition Lago. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de leer.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lac and lea apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
lac
3 ch
lea

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lac is [lak] while lea is [ˈlea]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53820, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lac is recorded at frequency rank #48,497, classified as anoun, pronounced [lak]. lea is at rank #5,323, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlea].

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 53820, this pair ranks #86,061 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of lac vs lea

Shared letters: al. Private to "lac": c. Private to "lea": e.

"lac" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "lea" · 3 letters · shape CVV

Frequency comparison

lac#48,497
lea#5,323

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lac" and "lea" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "lac" is a noun and "lea" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "lac" or "lea"?
"lea" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,323 in our Spanish list, against #48,497 for "lac". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering lac vs lea

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “lac”; for a verb, it's “lea”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lac” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list