empenho
The verdict
“empenho” is a moderately-common Portuguese word, ranked #11,623 in Portuguese word frequency and used as a noun.
- #11,623
- frequency rank, Portuguese
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - ato ou efeito de empenhar ('conceder algo material'); empenhamento
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | empenho |
| Language | Portuguese |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #11,623 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “empenho” sits in Portuguese frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The Portuguese entry for empenho is 7 letters long, classified as a noun. Corpus data places it at rank #11,623 in overall Portuguese word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for empenho, with forms such as "emepnho", "emmpenho", and "empehno". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "espelho", "engenho", "espinho", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct Portuguese form is empenho, spelled E-M-P-E-N-H-O.
Definition
- 1ato ou efeito de empenhar ('conceder algo material'); empenhamento
- 2grande disposição; interesse, afinco
- 3insistência obstinada
- 4poder de alguém; influência, prestígio
- 5pessoa influente, poderosa; pistolão
- 6verba reservada à execução de uma despesa fixada previamente no orçamento de uma repartição pública
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: emepnho,emmpenho,empehno,empenhho,empennho,empenoh,empneho,emppenho,epmenho,mepenho
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of empenho - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "empenho"?
What does "empenho" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "empenho"?
What language does "empenho" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “empenho”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct Portuguese spelling is E-M-P-E-N-H-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Don't mix it up with “espelho” - see the side-by-side comparison. empenho vs espelho
- 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.