lanzavslanzóWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#3,715
“lanza” frequency rank
#3,492
“lanzó” frequency rank
7207
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lanza lanzó
Definition Arma formada por un asta de longitud considerable que en uno de sus extremos posee una punta afilada hecha de algún material resistente como hierro, piedra o hueso, entre otros. Se ha usado en casi todas las épocas y culturas por su facilidad de fabricación y de manejo. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de lanzar o de lanzarse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lanza and lanzó apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
lanza
5 ch
lanzó

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

lanza and lanzó form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by a single letter - a in “lanza” becomes ó in “lanzó” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7207, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lanza is recorded at frequency rank #3,715, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈlãnsa]. lanzó is at rank #3,492, tagged as averb, pronounced [lãnˈso].

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 7207, this pair ranks #308,648 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

lanza#3,715
lanzó#3,492

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lanza" and "lanzó" be used interchangeably?
No, "lanza" and "lanzó" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering lanza vs lanzó

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “lanza”; for a verb, it's “lanzó”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lanza” 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