Which to use
“pacta” is a verb and “patas” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #47,977
- “pacta” frequency rank
- #4,734
- “patas” frequency rank
- 52711
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pacta | patas |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de pactar. | Forma del plural de pata. |
Where the eye mixes pacta and patas
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. pacta (CVCCV) and patas (CVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses pacta with patas
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pacta is [ˈpakt̪a] while patas is [ˈpat̪as]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52711, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pacta is recorded at frequency rank #47,977, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈpakt̪a]. patas is at rank #4,734, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈpat̪as].
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 52711, this pair ranks #91,390 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pacta vs patas
Shared letters: apt. Private to "pacta": c. Private to "patas": s.
"pacta" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "patas" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pacta" for "patas" ever safe?
Frequency check: "pacta" vs "patas" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pacta" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "patas" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #91,390 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pacta" and "patas" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pacta vs parca". 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 #91,390 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.