Which to use
“tango” and “tangos” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,208
- “tango” frequency rank
- #42,170
- “tangos” frequency rank
- 51378
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tango | tangos |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Palabra clave radiofónica del ICAO y NATO para la letra T. | Forma del plural de tango. |
Where the eye mixes tango and tangos
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. tango runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against tangos's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses tango with tangos
A purely visual mix-up. tango ([ˈt̪ãŋgo]) and tangos ([ˈt̪ãŋgos]) 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) - “tango” sits inside “tangos”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51378, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tango is recorded at frequency rank #9,208, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈt̪ãŋgo]. tangos is at rank #42,170, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈt̪ãŋgos].
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 51378, this pair ranks #98,179 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tango vs tangos
Shared letters: agnot. Private to "tango": -. Private to "tangos": s.
"tango" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "tangos" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "tango" for "tangos" ever safe?
Frequency check: "tango" vs "tangos" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "tango" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tangos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #98,179 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tango" and "tangos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tamos vs tangos". 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 #98,179 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.