leguavslenguasWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#31,419
“legua” frequency rank
#2,892
“lenguas” frequency rank
34311
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature legua lenguas
Definition Medida de longitud, de dimensión variable según los sistemas, aproximadamente equivalente a la distancia recorrida durante una hora caminando a paso normal. Forma del plural de lengua.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set legua and lenguas apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
legua
7 ch
lenguas

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. legua ([ˈleɣ̞wa]) and lenguas ([ˈlẽŋgwas]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34311, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

legua is recorded at frequency rank #31,419, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈleɣ̞wa]. lenguas is at rank #2,892, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈlẽŋgwas].

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 34311, this pair ranks #192,151 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of legua vs lenguas

Shared letters: aeglu. Private to "legua": -. Private to "lenguas": ns.

"legua" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV  ·  "lenguas" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • leguaelgua · legau · leggua · leuga · lgeua · llegua
  • lenguaselnguas · legnuas · lengaus · lengguas · lenguass · lengusa · lennguas · lenugas

Frequency comparison

legua#31,419
lenguas#2,892

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "legua" and "lenguas" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈleɣ̞wa] versus [ˈlẽŋgwas]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "legua" or "lenguas"?
"lenguas" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,892 in our Spanish list, against #31,419 for "legua". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering legua vs lenguas

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “legua” 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