Which to use
“osa” is a noun and “otra” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #22,441
- “osa” frequency rank
- #106
- “otra” frequency rank
- 22547
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | osa | otra |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Forma del femenino singular de oso. | Forma del femenino de otro. |
Where the eye mixes osa and otra
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: osa vs otra
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: osa is [ˈosa] while otra is [ˈot̪ɾa]. 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 (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22547, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
osa is recorded at frequency rank #22,441, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈosa]. otra is at rank #106, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈot̪ɾa].
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 22547, this pair ranks #249,808 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of osa vs otra
Shared letters: ao. Private to "osa": s. Private to "otra": rt.
"osa" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "otra" · 4 letters · shape VCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- otra ← orta · otar · otrra · ottra · tora
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "osa" for "otra" ever safe?
Which is more common, "osa" or "otra"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "osa" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "otra" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #249,808 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "osa" and "otra" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "oirá vs osa". 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 #249,808 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.