linovslutoConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#14,638
“lino” frequency rank
#11,444
“luto” frequency rank
26082
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lino luto
Definition (Linum spp.) Género de plantas herbáceas nativas de la India, cultivadas desde la Antigüedad por sus varias propiedades; se utiliza su fibra para hilandería, y su semilla, llamada linaza, para producir harina y aceite. Son hierbas de pequeño tamaño, hasta 70 cm, con el tallo recto, hueco y cilíndrico, las hojas angostas y puntiagudas, de color verde muy brillante, y flores terminales de color azul claro. De las numerosas especies la de más valor comercial es L. usitatissimum. Expresión de pena por la muerte de una persona, se manifiesta en la ropa y accesorios de color negro, así como en adornos que se colocan en el lugar donde vivía o donde se vela el difunto.

Where the eye mixes lino and luto

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

4 ch
lino
4 ch
luto

Why the eye confuses lino with luto

A purely visual mix-up. lino ([ˈlino]) and luto ([ˈlut̪o]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26082, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lino is recorded at frequency rank #14,638, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈlino]. luto is at rank #11,444, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈlut̪o].

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 26082, this pair ranks #233,408 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of lino vs luto

Shared letters: lo. Private to "lino": in. Private to "luto": tu.

"lino" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "luto" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • linoilno · linno · llino · lnio
  • lutolluto · ltuo · luot · lutto · ulto

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lino" and "luto" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈlino] versus [ˈlut̪o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "lino" or "luto"?
"luto" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,444 in our Spanish list, against #14,638 for "lino". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "lino" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "luto" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #233,408 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "lino" and "luto" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lino 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 #233,408 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