últimovsúltimosWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: último is a adjective, últimos is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

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

#374
“último” frequency rank
#677
“últimos” frequency rank
1051
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature último últimos
Definition Que, en una serie de cosas o eventos, no tiene otro que lo siga. Forma del plural de último.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
último
7 ch
últimos

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: último is [ˈul̪t̪imo] while últimos is [ˈul̪t̪imos]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “último” sits inside “últimos”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1051, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

último is recorded at frequency rank #374, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈul̪t̪imo]. últimos is at rank #677, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈul̪t̪imos].

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 1051, this pair ranks #322,626 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of último vs últimos

Shared letters: ilmotú. Private to "último": -. Private to "últimos": s.

"último" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV  ·  "últimos" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC

Frequency comparison

último#374
últimos#677

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "último" and "últimos" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "último" is an adjective and "últimos" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "último" or "últimos"?
"último" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #374 in our Spanish list, against #677 for "últimos". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering último vs últimos

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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