spavssuWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: spa is a noun, su is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“spa” is a noun and “su” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,233
“spa” frequency rank
#20
“su” frequency rank
15253
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature spa su
Definition Grafía alternativa de espá. Adjetivo posesivo de la tercera persona; de él, de ella, de ellos, de ellas.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set spa and su apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
spa
2 ch
su

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

spa and su 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 1 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 15253, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

spa is recorded at frequency rank #15,233, classified as anoun, pronounced [esˈpa]. su is at rank #20, tagged as anadj, pronounced [su].

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 15253, this pair ranks #280,933 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

spa#15,233
su#20

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "spa" and "su" be used interchangeably?
No, "spa" and "su" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering spa vs su

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “spa”; for an adjective, it's “su”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “spa” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list