opuestovsopusoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: opuesto is a adjective, opuso is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“opuesto” is an adjective and “opuso” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,643
“opuesto” frequency rank
#15,187
“opuso” frequency rank
20830
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature opuesto opuso
Definition En una cosa o situación con dos lados o bandos mutuamente excluyentes o complementarios, se dice de uno de ellos respecto al otro; lo que está en el otro extremo respecto a su contraparte; diametralmente diferente. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de oponer o de oponerse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set opuesto and opuso apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
opuesto
5 ch
opuso

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: opuesto is [oˈpwest̪o] while opuso is [oˈpuso]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20830, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

opuesto is recorded at frequency rank #5,643, classified as anadj, pronounced [oˈpwest̪o]. opuso is at rank #15,187, tagged as averb, pronounced [oˈpuso].

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 20830, this pair ranks #257,591 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of opuesto vs opuso

Shared letters: opsu. Private to "opuesto": et. Private to "opuso": -.

"opuesto" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCCV  ·  "opuso" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • opuestoopeusto · oppuesto · opuesot · opuessto · opuestto · opuetso · opuseto · oupesto
  • opusooppuso · opsuo · opuos · opusso · oupso · pouso

Frequency comparison

opuesto#5,643
opuso#15,187

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "opuesto" and "opuso" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "opuesto" is an adjective and "opuso" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "opuesto" or "opuso"?
"opuesto" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,643 in our Spanish list, against #15,187 for "opuso". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering opuesto vs opuso

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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