Which to use
“policías” and “polillas” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,263
- “policías” frequency rank
- #46,737
- “polillas” frequency rank
- 49000
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | policías | polillas |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Forma del plural de policía. | Forma del plural de polilla. |
Where the eye mixes policías and polillas
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. policías (CVCVCVVC) and polillas (CVCVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses policías with polillas
A purely visual mix-up. policías ([poliˈsias]) and polillas ([poˈliʝas]) 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 49000, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
policías is recorded at frequency rank #2,263, classified as anoun, pronounced [poliˈsias]. polillas is at rank #46,737, tagged as anoun, pronounced [poˈliʝas].
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 49000, this pair ranks #111,328 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of policías vs polillas
Shared letters: ailops. Private to "policías": cí. Private to "polillas": -.
"policías" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC · "polillas" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- polillas ← oplillas · ploillas · poilllas · polilals · polilas · polillass · polillsa · pollilas
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "policías" and "polillas" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "policías" or "polillas"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "policías" and "polillas" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "policías" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "polillas" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #111,328 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "policías" and "polillas" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "palillos vs polillas". 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 #111,328 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.