temporalvstemporalesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,956
“temporal” frequency rank
#7,793
“temporales” frequency rank
10749
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature temporal temporales
Definition Relacionado con el tiempo cronológico. Forma del plural de temporal.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set temporal and temporales apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
temporal
10 ch
temporales

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. temporal ([t̪ẽmpoˈɾal]) and temporales ([t̪ẽmpoˈɾales]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “temporal” sits inside “temporales”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10749, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

temporal is recorded at frequency rank #2,956, classified as anadj, pronounced [t̪ẽmpoˈɾal]. temporales is at rank #7,793, tagged as anadj, pronounced [t̪ẽmpoˈɾales].

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 10749, this pair ranks #297,506 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of temporal vs temporales

Shared letters: aelmoprt. Private to "temporal": -. Private to "temporales": s.

"temporal" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "temporales" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • temporaletmporal · temmporal · temopral · tempoarl · temporall · temporla · temporral · tempporal
  • temporalesetmporales · temmporales · temoprales · tempoarles · temporaels · temporaless · temporalles · temporalse

Frequency comparison

temporal#2,956
temporales#7,793

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "temporal" and "temporales" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([t̪ẽmpoˈɾal] versus [t̪ẽmpoˈɾales]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "temporal" or "temporales"?
"temporal" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,956 in our Spanish list, against #7,793 for "temporales". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering temporal vs temporales

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 “temporal” 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