recadovsrezagoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#31,086
“recado” frequency rank
#40,521
“rezago” frequency rank
71607
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature recado rezago
Definition Acción o efecto de recadar. Acción o efecto de rezagar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set recado and rezago apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
recado
6 ch
rezago

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. recado ([reˈkað̞o]) and rezago ([reˈsaɣ̞o]) 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 71607, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

recado is recorded at frequency rank #31,086, classified as anoun, pronounced [reˈkað̞o]. rezago is at rank #40,521, tagged as anoun, pronounced [reˈsaɣ̞o].

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 71607, this pair ranks #27,120 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of recado vs rezago

Shared letters: aeor. Private to "recado": cd. Private to "rezago": gz.

"recado" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "rezago" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • recadoercado · reacdo · recaddo · recaod · reccado · recdao · rrecado
  • rezagoerzago · reazgo · rezaggo · rezaog · rezgao · rezzago · rrezago · rzeago

Frequency comparison

recado#31,086
rezago#40,521

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "recado" and "rezago" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([reˈkað̞o] versus [reˈsaɣ̞o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "recado" or "rezago"?
"recado" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #31,086 in our Spanish list, against #40,521 for "rezago". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering recado vs rezago

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “recado” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list