Which to use
“maíz” is a noun and “majo” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,806
- “maíz” frequency rank
- #29,286
- “majo” frequency rank
- 34092
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | maíz | majo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (Zea mays) Planta anual, herbácea, de la familia de las poáceas, originaria de América y hoy cultivada en todo el mundo como alimento. Tiene tallos erectos, en forma de caña, de hasta 3 m de altura, hojas densamente apretadas que protegen las inflorescencias femeninas y un penacho terminal de flores masculinas. La espádice femenina se transforma en un fruto compuesto llamado mazorca, con los granos dispuestos en hileras sobre un eje leñoso | Agradable a la vista o en el trato. |
Where the eye mixes maíz and majo
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. maíz (CVVC) and majo (CVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses maíz with majo
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: maíz is [maˈis] while majo is [ˈmaxo]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34092, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
maíz is recorded at frequency rank #4,806, classified as anoun, pronounced [maˈis]. majo is at rank #29,286, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈmaxo].
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 34092, this pair ranks #193,289 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of maíz vs majo
Shared letters: am. Private to "maíz": zí. Private to "majo": jo.
"maíz" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "majo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- majo ← amjo · majjo · maoj · mjao · mmajo
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "maíz" for "majo" ever safe?
Which is more common, "maíz" or "majo"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "maíz" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "majo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #193,289 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "maíz" and "majo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "majo vs math". 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 #193,289 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.