siestavssiestasWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#10,072
“siesta” frequency rank
#48,699
“siestas” frequency rank
58771
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature siesta siestas
Definition Tiempo después del mediodía en que aprieta más el calor. Forma del plural de siesta.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set siesta and siestas apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
siesta
7 ch
siestas

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. siesta ([ˈsjest̪a]) and siestas ([ˈsjest̪as]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “siesta” sits inside “siestas”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58771, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

siesta is recorded at frequency rank #10,072, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈsjest̪a]. siestas is at rank #48,699, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈsjest̪as].

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 58771, this pair ranks #65,210 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of siesta vs siestas

Shared letters: aeist. Private to "siesta": -. Private to "siestas": -.

"siesta" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV  ·  "siestas" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • siestaciesta · isesta · seista · siesat · siessta · siestta · sietsa · siseta
  • siestasciestas · isestas · seistas · siesats · siesstas · siestass · siestsa · siesttas

Frequency comparison

siesta#10,072
siestas#48,699

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "siesta" and "siestas" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈsjest̪a] versus [ˈsjest̪as]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "siesta" or "siestas"?
"siesta" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,072 in our Spanish list, against #48,699 for "siestas". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering siesta vs siestas

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 “siesta” 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