Which to use
“ray” and “red” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,350
- “ray” frequency rank
- #697
- “red” frequency rank
- 7047
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ray | red |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Rayo. | Malla cosa que fue creada para unir o sostener algo. |
Where the eye mixes ray and red
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ray with red
A purely visual mix-up. ray (/ɹeɪ/) and red ([ˈreð̞]) 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 7047, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ray is recorded at frequency rank #6,350, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɹeɪ/. red is at rank #697, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈreð̞].
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 7047, this pair ranks #309,077 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ray vs red
Shared letters: r. Private to "ray": ay. Private to "red": de.
"ray" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "red" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "ray" and "red" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "ray" or "red"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ray" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "red" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #309,077 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ray" and "red" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rajo vs ray". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #309,077 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.