raciónvsratioWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#20,488
“ración” frequency rank
#19,857
“ratio” frequency rank
40345
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ración ratio
Definition Cantidad de alimento correspondiente a un comensal y comida. Cociente de dos números o dos magnitudes comparables entre sí, que refleja su proporción.

Where the eye mixes ración and ratio

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. ración runs 6 letters (CVCVVC) against ratio's 5 (CVCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
ración
5 ch
ratio

Visual trap between ración and ratio

A purely visual mix-up. ración ([raˈsjõn]) and ratio ([ˈrat̪jo]) 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 40345, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ración is recorded at frequency rank #20,488, classified as anoun, pronounced [raˈsjõn]. ratio is at rank #19,857, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈrat̪jo].

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 40345, this pair ranks #159,601 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ración vs ratio

Shared letters: air. Private to "ración": cnó. Private to "ratio": ot.

"ración" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC  ·  "ratio" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • ratio ← artio · raito · ratoi · rratio · rtaio

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ración" and "ratio" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([raˈsjõn] versus [ˈrat̪jo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "ración" vs "ratio" - which ranks higher?
"ratio" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,857 in our Spanish list, against #20,488 for "ración". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "ración" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ratio" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #159,601 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ración" and "ratio" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rajo vs ratio". 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 #159,601 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list