mínimovsmismoTell them apart

Which to use

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

#1,611
“mínimo” frequency rank
#86
“mismo” frequency rank
1697
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mínimo mismo
Definition Superlativo irregular de pequeño: sumamente pequeño. Que dos o más cosas o personas son una sola.

Where the eye mixes mínimo and mismo

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
mínimo
5 ch
mismo

Look-alike desk: mínimo vs mismo

A purely visual mix-up. mínimo ([ˈminimo]) and mismo ([ˈmismo]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1697, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mínimo is recorded at frequency rank #1,611, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈminimo]. mismo is at rank #86, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈmismo].

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 1697, this pair ranks #321,599 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of mínimo vs mismo

Shared letters: imo. Private to "mínimo": . Private to "mismo": s.

"mínimo" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "mismo" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mismoimsmo · mimso · mismmo · misom · missmo · mmismo · msimo

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mínimo" and "mismo" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈminimo] versus [ˈmismo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "mínimo" vs "mismo" - which ranks higher?
"mismo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #86 in our Spanish list, against #1,611 for "mínimo". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "mínimo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "mismo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #321,599 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "mínimo" and "mismo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mingo vs mínimo". 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 #321,599 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