mesvsmurWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#403
“mes” frequency rank
#49,813
“mur” frequency rank
50216
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mes mur
Definition Cada una de las doce partes, de duración variable según el sistema pero similar al ciclo lunar, en que se divide el año. Ratón (roedor).

Where the eye mixes mes and mur

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

3 ch
mes
3 ch
mur

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. mes ([ˈmes]) and mur ([ˈmuɾ]) 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 50216, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mes is recorded at frequency rank #403, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmes]. mur is at rank #49,813, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmuɾ].

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 50216, this pair ranks #104,449 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of mes vs mur

Shared letters: m. Private to "mes": es. Private to "mur": ru.

"mes" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "mur" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mes" and "mur" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈmes] versus [ˈmuɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "mes" or "mur"?
"mes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #403 in our Spanish list, against #49,813 for "mur". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list