lacravslastraWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#26,114
“lacra” frequency rank
#37,186
“lastra” frequency rank
63300
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lacra lastra
Definition Secuela de una enfermedad. Piedra plana que sale de la cantera en hojas planas y de poco grueso, a manera de tablas.

Where the eye mixes lacra and lastra

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. lacra runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against lastra's 6 (CVCCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
lacra
6 ch
lastra

Why the eye confuses lacra with lastra

A purely visual mix-up. lacra ([ˈlakɾa]) and lastra ([ˈlast̪ɾa]) 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 63300, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lacra is recorded at frequency rank #26,114, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈlakɾa]. lastra is at rank #37,186, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈlast̪ɾa].

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 63300, this pair ranks #49,187 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of lacra vs lastra

Shared letters: alr. Private to "lacra": c. Private to "lastra": st.

"lacra" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "lastra" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • lacra ← alcra · lacar · laccra · lacrra · larca · llacra
  • lastra ← alstra · lasrta · lasstra · lastar · lastrra · lasttra · latsra · llastra

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "lacra" and "lastra" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈlakɾa] versus [ˈlast̪ɾa]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "lacra" or "lastra"?
"lacra" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,114 in our Spanish list, against #37,186 for "lastra". 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 "lacra" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lastra" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #49,187 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "lacra" and "lastra" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "labora vs lastra". 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 #49,187 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