valevsviloWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#638
“vale” frequency rank
#41,132
“vilo” frequency rank
41770
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vale vilo
Definition Documento de pago o sustitución de algo. Véase en vilo

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vale and vilo apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
vale
4 ch
vilo

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. vale ([ˈbale]) and vilo ([ˈbilo]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41770, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vale is recorded at frequency rank #638, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈbale]. vilo is at rank #41,132, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈbilo].

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 41770, this pair ranks #151,893 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vale vs vilo

Shared letters: lv. Private to "vale": ae. Private to "vilo": io.

"vale" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "vilo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • valeavle · bale · vael · vlae · vvale
  • vilobilo · ivlo · villo · viol · vlio · vvilo

Frequency comparison

vale#638
vilo#41,132

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vale" and "vilo" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈbale] versus [ˈbilo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "vale" or "vilo"?
"vale" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #638 in our Spanish list, against #41,132 for "vilo". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering vale vs vilo

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 “vale” 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