pacotillavspatillaConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#42,601
“pacotilla” frequency rank
#47,984
“patilla” frequency rank
90585
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pacotilla patilla
Definition Equipaje que se permite llevar a los marineros sin pagar flete. Pequeña extensión con forma de pata de un objeto, generalmente añadida para fines de sujeción.

Where the eye mixes pacotilla and patilla

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. pacotilla runs 9 letters (CVCVCVCCV) against patilla's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
pacotilla
7 ch
patilla

Visual trap between pacotilla and patilla

A purely visual mix-up. pacotilla ([pakoˈt̪iʝa]) and patilla ([paˈt̪iʝa]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 90585, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pacotilla is recorded at frequency rank #42,601, classified as anoun, pronounced [pakoˈt̪iʝa]. patilla is at rank #47,984, tagged as anoun, pronounced [paˈt̪iʝa].

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 90585, this pair ranks #2,426 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of pacotilla vs patilla

Shared letters: ailpt. Private to "pacotilla": co. Private to "patilla": -.

"pacotilla" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCCV  ·  "patilla" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pacotilla ← apcotilla · paccotilla · pacoitlla · pacotila · pacotilal · pacotlila · pacottilla · pactoilla
  • patilla ← aptilla · paitlla · patila · patilal · patlila · pattilla · ppatilla · ptailla

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "pacotilla" for "patilla" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([pakoˈt̪iʝa] versus [paˈt̪iʝa]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "pacotilla" vs "patilla" - which ranks higher?
"pacotilla" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #42,601 in our Spanish list, against #47,984 for "patilla". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "pacotilla" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "patilla" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #2,426 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "pacotilla" and "patilla" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "patilla vs puntilla". 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 #2,426 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