pillarvspillasWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: pillar is a verb, pillas is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“pillar” is a verb and “pillas” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#18,042
“pillar” frequency rank
#34,268
“pillas” frequency rank
52310
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pillar pillas
Definition Tomar o coger para sí lo que es propiedad de otros. Forma del femenino plural de pillo₁.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
pillar
6 ch
pillas

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pillar is [piˈʝaɾ] while pillas is [ˈpiʝas]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - r in “pillar” becomes s in “pillas”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52310, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pillar is recorded at frequency rank #18,042, classified as averb, pronounced [piˈʝaɾ]. pillas is at rank #34,268, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈpiʝas].

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 52310, this pair ranks #93,328 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pillar vs pillas

Shared letters: ailp. Private to "pillar": r. Private to "pillas": s.

"pillar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "pillas" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pillaripllar · pilalr · pillarr · pillra · plilar · ppillar
  • pillasipllas · pilals · pillass · pillsa · plilas · ppillas

Frequency comparison

pillar#18,042
pillas#34,268

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pillar" and "pillas" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "pillar" is a verb and "pillas" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "pillar" or "pillas"?
"pillar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,042 in our Spanish list, against #34,268 for "pillas". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering pillar vs pillas

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “pillar”; for an adjective, it's “pillas”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “pillar” 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