maltratavsmaltratosWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#40,384
“maltrata” frequency rank
#37,707
“maltratos” frequency rank
78091
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature maltrata maltratos
Definition Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de maltratar o de maltratarse. Forma del plural de maltrato.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set maltrata and maltratos apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
maltrata
9 ch
maltratos

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: maltrata is [mal̪ˈt̪ɾat̪a] while maltratos is [mal̪ˈt̪ɾat̪os]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 78091, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

maltrata is recorded at frequency rank #40,384, classified as averb, pronounced [mal̪ˈt̪ɾat̪a]. maltratos is at rank #37,707, tagged as anoun, pronounced [mal̪ˈt̪ɾat̪os].

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 78091, this pair ranks #14,976 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of maltrata vs maltratos

Shared letters: almrt. Private to "maltrata": -. Private to "maltratos": os.

"maltrata" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV  ·  "maltratos" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • maltrataamltrata · malltrata · malrtata · maltarta · maltraat · maltratta · maltrrata · maltrtaa
  • maltratosamltratos · malltratos · malrtatos · maltartos · maltraots · maltratoss · maltratso · maltrattos

Frequency comparison

maltrata#40,384
maltratos#37,707

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "maltrata" and "maltratos" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "maltrata" is a verb and "maltratos" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "maltrata" or "maltratos"?
"maltratos" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #37,707 in our Spanish list, against #40,384 for "maltrata". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering maltrata vs maltratos

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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