pericovspermisoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#21,104
“perico” frequency rank
#1,693
“permiso” frequency rank
22797
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature perico permiso
Definition Cualquier ave trepadora de la familia de los loros de tamaño pequeño o mediano. Consentimiento o beneplácito que se otorga a alguien para hacer, disponer o decir algo.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set perico and permiso apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
perico
7 ch
permiso

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. perico ([peˈɾiko]) and permiso ([peɾˈmiso]) 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 22797, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

perico is recorded at frequency rank #21,104, classified as anoun, pronounced [peˈɾiko]. permiso is at rank #1,693, tagged as anoun, pronounced [peɾˈmiso].

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 22797, this pair ranks #248,693 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of perico vs permiso

Shared letters: eiopr. Private to "perico": c. Private to "permiso": ms.

"perico" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "permiso" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pericoeprico · peirco · pericco · perioc · perrico · pperico
  • permisoeprmiso · pemriso · perimso · permios · permisso · permmiso · permsio · perrmiso

Frequency comparison

perico#21,104
permiso#1,693

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "perico" and "permiso" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([peˈɾiko] versus [peɾˈmiso]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "perico" or "permiso"?
"permiso" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,693 in our Spanish list, against #21,104 for "perico". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering perico vs permiso

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “perico” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list