Which to use
“papas” and “pasos” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,025
- “papas” frequency rank
- #1,952
- “pasos” frequency rank
- 6977
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | papas | pasos |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Puches o sopas claras que se dan a los niños. | En algunos deportes, en especial el baloncesto y el balonmano, falta que consiste en dar más de tres pasos con la pelota en la mano sin botarla. |
Where the eye mixes papas and pasos
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses papas with pasos
A purely visual mix-up. papas ([ˈpapas]) and pasos ([ˈpasos]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6977, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
papas is recorded at frequency rank #5,025, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpapas]. pasos is at rank #1,952, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈpasos].
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 6977, this pair ranks #309,278 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of papas vs pasos
Shared letters: aps. Private to "papas": -. Private to "pasos": o.
"papas" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "pasos" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "papas" for "pasos" ever safe?
Which is more common, "papas" or "pasos"?
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 "papas" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pasos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #309,278 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "papas" and "pasos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "papas vs pozas". 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 #309,278 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.