gafe

noun

The verdict

“gafe” has 5 generated spelling variants in the Portuguese index at frequency #36,467. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#36,467
frequency rank, Portuguese
521
“G” headwords
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - ação ou palavra impensada que involuntariamente causa constrangimento ao autor e/ou às pessoas a ele próximas

Corpus desk

Index PT-gafe · gafe · Portuguese

gafe · rank #36,467 · 5 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #36,467
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 5 variants
  • BOOK-MID 521
  • PHOTO-FINISH Garage

Nearest frequency peer: Garage (+1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “gafe”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “gafe” sits against the nearest ranked Portuguese headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

gafe vs gay
50% similar
gafe vs gás
25% similar
gafe vs gato
50% similar

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

Key facts for gafe
PropertyValue
Headwordgafe
LanguagePortuguese
Part of speechNoun
Letters4
Frequency rank#36,467
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “gafe” 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).gafe lands here:

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

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

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 5 spelling variants around gafe, anoun. Corpus frequency is #36,467 among 521 “G” headwords. Dominant gloss: "ação ou palavra impensada que involuntariamente causa constrangimento ao autor e/ou às pessoas a ele próximas".

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for gafe, with forms such as "agfe", "gaef", and "gaffe". 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, "gay", "gás", "gato", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct Portuguese form is gafe, spelled G-A-F-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    ação ou palavra impensada que involuntariamente causa constrangimento ao autor e/ou às pessoas a ele próximas

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how gafe appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Lula comete gafe e chama venezuelanos de bolivianos

Synonyms

descuidodeslizeescorregadelarata

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • agfe
  • gaef
  • gaffe
  • gfae
  • ggafe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of gafe - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

agfe2gaef2gaffe1gfae2ggafe1
Edit distance from "gafe"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "gafe"?
"gafe" is spelled G-A-F-E.
What does "gafe" mean?
As a noun, "gafe" means: ação ou palavra impensada que involuntariamente causa constrangimento ao autor e/ou às pessoas a ele próximas
What words are commonly confused with "gafe"?
"gafe" is commonly confused with "gay", "gás", "gato". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What language does "gafe" come from?
"gafe" is a Portuguese word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

Similar Portuguese words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "gafe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked Portuguese headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (5 here; floor ≥5).

What to do next

You've looked up "gafe". Here's where to go from here.

  • "gafe" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "gay". View pair
  • 5 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #36,467 among Portuguese headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more Portuguese words in the "G" letter cohort. G–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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