Which to use
“recelo” is a noun and “recto” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,752
- “recelo” frequency rank
- #10,058
- “recto” frequency rank
- 37810
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | recelo | recto |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Temor, sospecha o cuidado. | Que tiene la forma que sigue el camino más corto entre dos puntos, sin inclinarse, ni torcerse, ni cambiar de dirección. |
Where the eye mixes recelo and recto
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: recelo vs recto
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: recelo is [reˈselo] while recto is [ˈrekt̪o]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37810, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
recelo is recorded at frequency rank #27,752, classified as anoun, pronounced [reˈselo]. recto is at rank #10,058, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈrekt̪o].
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 37810, this pair ranks #173,352 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of recelo vs recto
Shared letters: ceor. Private to "recelo": l. Private to "recto": t.
"recelo" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "recto" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "recelo" and "recto" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "recelo" or "recto" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "recelo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "recto" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #173,352 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "recelo" and "recto" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "recelo vs recemos". 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 #173,352 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.