Which to use
“vale” and “vals” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #638
- “vale” frequency rank
- #22,539
- “vals” frequency rank
- 23177
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vale | vals |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Documento de pago o sustitución de algo. | Baile de pareja, de origen alemán, que se ejecuta con movimiento giratorio y de traslación, colocando el hombre su mano derecha en la cintura de la mujer y su izquierda en la mano derecha de ella. |
Where the eye mixes vale and vals
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses vale with vals
A purely visual mix-up. vale ([ˈbale]) and vals ([ˈbals]) 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 a single letter - e in “vale” becomes s in “vals”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23177, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
vale is recorded at frequency rank #638, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈbale]. vals is at rank #22,539, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈbals].
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 23177, this pair ranks #247,012 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of vale vs vals
Shared letters: alv. Private to "vale": e. Private to "vals": s.
"vale" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "vals" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "vale" and "vals" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "vale" vs "vals" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "vale" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "vals" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #247,012 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vale" and "vals" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vals vs vel". 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 #247,012 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.