Which to use
“resfriado” is an adjective and “resfrío” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #23,930
- “resfriado” frequency rank
- #45,577
- “resfrío” frequency rank
- 69507
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | resfriado | resfrío |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Que ha cogido un resfrío o resfriado. | Enfermedad de las vías respiratorias superiores, en especial de la faringe y nariz, ocasionada generalmente por virus (resfrío común), o causada por bacterias o de origen alérgico. Se caracteriza por una inflamación de las mucosas con abundante moco, congestión nasal, fiebre y malestar general. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set resfriado and resfrío apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
resfriado and resfrío form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 69507, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
resfriado is recorded at frequency rank #23,930, classified as anadj, pronounced [resˈfɾjað̞o]. resfrío is at rank #45,577, tagged as anoun, pronounced [resˈfɾio].
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 69507, this pair ranks #31,840 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "resfriado" and "resfrío" be used interchangeably?
Remembering resfriado vs resfrío
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “resfriado”; for a noun, it's “resfrío”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “resfriado” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable