langvslinWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: lang is a adjective, lin is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“lang” is an adjective and “lin” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#18,297
“lang” frequency rank
#13,734
“lin” frequency rank
32031
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lang lin
Definition Largo. Lino.

Where the eye mixes lang and lin

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch
lang
3 ch
lin

Look-alike desk: lang vs lin

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lang is [laŋ] while lin is [lɛ̃]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32031, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lang is recorded at frequency rank #18,297, classified as anadj, pronounced [laŋ]. lin is at rank #13,734, tagged as anoun, pronounced [lɛ̃].

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 32031, this pair ranks #204,097 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of lang vs lin

Shared letters: ln. Private to "lang": ag. Private to "lin": i.

"lang" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "lin" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • langalng · lagn · langg · lanng · llang · lnag

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "lang" for "lin" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "lang" is an adjective and "lin" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "lang" or "lin"?
"lin" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,734 in our Spanish list, against #18,297 for "lang". 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 "lang" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lin" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #204,097 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "lang" and "lin" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lang vs longo". 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 #204,097 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