Which to use
“pilla” is a verb and “polilla” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #23,541
- “pilla” frequency rank
- #32,810
- “polilla” frequency rank
- 56351
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pilla | polilla |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de pillar. | Mariposa nocturna de un centímetro de largo, cenicienta, con una mancha negra en las alas, que son horizontales y estrechas, cabeza amarillenta y antenas casi verticales. Su larva, de unos dos milímetros de longitud, se alimenta de borra y hace una especie de capullo, destruyendo para ello la materia en donde anida, que suele ser de lana, tejidos, pieles, papel, etc. |
Where the eye mixes pilla and polilla
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. pilla runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against polilla's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between pilla and polilla
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pilla is [ˈpiʝa] while polilla is [poˈliʝa]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56351, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pilla is recorded at frequency rank #23,541, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈpiʝa]. polilla is at rank #32,810, tagged as anoun, pronounced [poˈliʝa].
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 56351, this pair ranks #74,978 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of pilla vs polilla
Shared letters: ailp. Private to "pilla": -. Private to "polilla": o.
"pilla" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "polilla" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pilla" for "polilla" ever safe?
Which is more common, "pilla" or "polilla"?
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 "pilla" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "polilla" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #74,978 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pilla" and "polilla" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "patilla vs polilla". 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 #74,978 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.