Which to use
“población” and “poblaciones” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #471
- “población” frequency rank
- #4,033
- “poblaciones” frequency rank
- 4504
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | población | poblaciones |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Acción o finalidad de poblar un determinado lugar. | Forma del plural de población. |
Where the eye mixes población and poblaciones
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. población runs 9 letters (CVCCVCVVC) against poblaciones's 11 (CVCCVCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses población with poblaciones
A purely visual mix-up. población ([poβ̞laˈsjõn]) and poblaciones ([poβ̞laˈsjones]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4504, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
población is recorded at frequency rank #471, classified as anoun, pronounced [poβ̞laˈsjõn]. poblaciones is at rank #4,033, tagged as anoun, pronounced [poβ̞laˈsjones].
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 4504, this pair ranks #315,938 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of población vs poblaciones
Shared letters: abcilnop. Private to "población": ó. Private to "poblaciones": es.
"población" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC · "poblaciones" · 11 letters · shape CVCCVCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- poblaciones ← opblaciones · pbolaciones · pobalciones · pobblaciones · poblacciones · poblacinoes · poblacioens · poblacioness
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "población" for "poblaciones" ever safe?
Which is more common, "población" or "poblaciones"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "población" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "poblaciones" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #315,938 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "población" and "poblaciones" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "poblacionales vs poblaciones". 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 #315,938 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.