lavovsllanoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: lavo is a verb, llano is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“lavo” is a verb and “llano” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#26,508
“lavo” frequency rank
#10,169
“llano” frequency rank
36677
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lavo llano
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de lavar. Igual y extendido, sin altos ni bajos.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lavo and llano apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
lavo
5 ch
llano

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lavo is [ˈlaβ̞o] while llano is [ˈʝano]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36677, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lavo is recorded at frequency rank #26,508, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaβ̞o]. llano is at rank #10,169, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʝano].

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 36677, this pair ranks #179,393 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of lavo vs llano

Shared letters: alo. Private to "lavo": v. Private to "llano": n.

"lavo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "llano" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • lavoalvo · labo · laov · lavvo · llavo · lvao
  • llanolalno · lano · llanno · llaon · llnao

Frequency comparison

lavo#26,508
llano#10,169

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lavo" and "llano" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "lavo" is a verb and "llano" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "lavo" or "llano"?
"llano" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,169 in our Spanish list, against #26,508 for "lavo". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering lavo vs llano

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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