sellavsselloWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: sella is a verb, sello is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“sella” is a verb and “sello” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#34,339
“sella” frequency rank
#4,550
“sello” frequency rank
38889
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sella sello
Definition Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de sellar. Altorrelieve de un texto, signo o figura que, previamente entintado, se emplea para estamparlo en un documento.

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
sella
5 ch
sello

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: sella is [ˈseʝa] while sello is [ˈseʝo]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - a in “sella” becomes o in “sello”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38889, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sella is recorded at frequency rank #34,339, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈseʝa]. sello is at rank #4,550, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈseʝo].

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 38889, this pair ranks #167,540 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of sella vs sello

Shared letters: els. Private to "sella": a. Private to "sello": o.

"sella" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "sello" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sellaeslla · selal · slela · ssella
  • sellocello · esllo · selo · selol · slelo · ssello

Frequency comparison

sella#34,339
sello#4,550

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sella" and "sello" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "sella" is a verb and "sello" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "sella" or "sello"?
"sello" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,550 in our Spanish list, against #34,339 for "sella". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering sella vs sello

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “sella”; for a noun, it's “sello”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sella” 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