Which to use
“paisa” and “pays” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #33,754
- “paisa” frequency rank
- #42,064
- “pays” frequency rank
- 75818
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | paisa | pays |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Amigo o compañero con quien se tiene mucha intimidad. | País. |
Where the eye mixes paisa and pays
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. paisa runs 5 letters (CVVCV) against pays's 4 (CVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: paisa vs pays
A purely visual mix-up. paisa ([ˈpajsa]) and pays (/pɛi/) 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 75818, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
paisa is recorded at frequency rank #33,754, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpajsa]. pays is at rank #42,064, tagged as anoun, pronounced /pɛi/.
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 75818, this pair ranks #18,850 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of paisa vs pays
Shared letters: aps. Private to "paisa": i. Private to "pays": y.
"paisa" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV · "pays" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "paisa" and "pays" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "paisa" vs "pays" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "paisa" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pays" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #18,850 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "paisa" and "pays" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pa'l vs pays". 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 #18,850 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.