chave

/ˈʃa.vɨ/

//ˈʃa.vɨ// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“chave” is a regularly-used Portuguese word, ranked #1,329 in Portuguese word frequency and used as a noun.

#1,329
frequency rank, Portuguese
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - objeto usado para abrir e fechar uma fechadura, algemas ou cadeado

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

chave vs che
60% similar
chave vs chefe
60% similar
chave vs chuva
60% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for chave
PropertyValue
Headwordchave
LanguagePortuguese
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈʃa.vɨ/
Letters5
Frequency rank#1,329
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “chave” sits in Portuguese frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). chave lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The Portuguese entry for chave is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈʃa.vɨ/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,329 in overall Portuguese word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 9 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for chave, with forms such as "cahve", "cchave", and "chaev". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "che", "chefe", "chuva", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct Portuguese form is chave, spelled C-H-A-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    objeto usado para abrir e fechar uma fechadura, algemas ou cadeado
  2. 2
    sinal (junto com colchetes e parênteses) usado para agrupar elementos matemáticos em operações de prioridades diversas
  3. 3
    clave musical
  4. 4
    golpe usado para imobilizar o adversário
  5. 5
    descrição que auxilia a identificação de seres vivos
  6. 6
    mecanismo que abre e fecha orifícios, permitindo controlar o som em instrumentos musicais
  7. 7
    identificador que permite localizar informações em repositórios de dados
  8. 8
    pedaço de informação, geralmente secreto, usado para personalizar cifras
  9. 9
    sinal de pontuação: {}

This word in other languages

key(English)llave(Español)clef(Français)Schlüssel(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: cahve,cchave,chaev,chavve,chhave,chvae,hcave

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of chave - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

cahve2cchave1chaev2chavve1chhave1chvae2hcave2
Edit distance from "chave"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 Portuguese corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "chave"?
"chave" is spelled C-H-A-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃa.vɨ/.
What does "chave" mean?
As a noun, "chave" means: objeto usado para abrir e fechar uma fechadura, algemas ou cadeado
What words are commonly confused with "chave"?
"chave" is commonly confused with "che", "chefe", "chuva". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "chave"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chave" is /ˈʃa.vɨ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "chave" come from?
"chave" is a Portuguese word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “chave”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct Portuguese spelling is C-H-A-V-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈʃa.vɨ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “che” - see the side-by-side comparison. chave vs che
  • Browse more Portuguese words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Portuguese words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list