Which to use
“recto” is an adjective and “retos” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10,058
- “recto” frequency rank
- #6,112
- “retos” frequency rank
- 16170
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | recto | retos |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Que tiene la forma que sigue el camino más corto entre dos puntos, sin inclinarse, ni torcerse, ni cambiar de dirección. | Forma del plural de reto. |
Where the eye mixes recto and retos
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses recto with retos
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: recto is [ˈrekt̪o] while retos is [ˈret̪os]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16170, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
recto is recorded at frequency rank #10,058, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈrekt̪o]. retos is at rank #6,112, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈret̪os].
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 16170, this pair ranks #277,232 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of recto vs retos
Shared letters: eort. Private to "recto": c. Private to "retos": s.
"recto" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "retos" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "recto" for "retos" ever safe?
Frequency check: "recto" vs "retos" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "recto" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "retos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #277,232 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "recto" and "retos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "recto vs rengo". 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 #277,232 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.