pontão

/pon.'toŋ/ ou /pʊn.'toŋ/

//pon.'toŋ/ ou /pʊn.'toŋ// noun

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

The verdict

“pontão” is uncommon Portuguese (frequency #58,133 among 3,113 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#58,133
frequency rank, Portuguese
3,113
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - cada um dos dois paus fortes que formam uma espécie de ponte simples para passar um pequeno ribeiro

Key facts for pontão
PropertyValue
Headwordpontão
LanguagePortuguese
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pon.'toŋ/ ou /pʊn.'toŋ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#58,133
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “pontão” 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). pontão lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

pontão is uncommon Portuguese at frequency #58,133 among 3,113 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /pon.'toŋ/ ou /pʊn.'toŋ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 10 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for pontão in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable Portuguese rules. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct Portuguese form is pontão, spelled P-O-N-T-Ã-O.

Definition

  1. 1
    cada um dos dois paus fortes que formam uma espécie de ponte simples para passar um pequeno ribeiro
  2. 2
    pequena ponte
  3. 3
    na armação do teto, telhado ou piso de uma casa, vigota, madeiro que vai de trave a trave
  4. 4
    viga que descansa longitudinalmente sobre o muro ou parede e que recebe e reparte o peso das traves
  5. 5
    sarrafão, barrote
  6. 6
    nas lareiras tradicionais, trave forte da que pendura a gramalheira
  7. 7
    cada um dos dois postes verticais que formam o marco de uma cancela
  8. 8
    pau grosso que serve de esteio, poste para apoio e sustento
  9. 9
    barco fluvial de fundo plano
  10. 10
    navio militar sem propulsão, em geral fundeado, a servir de depósito, paiol, arrecadação, etc.

Synonyms

puntãopontelhapuntal

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 "pontão"?
"pontão" is spelled P-O-N-T-Ã-O. The IPA pronunciation is /pon.'toŋ/ ou /pʊn.'toŋ/.
What does "pontão" mean?
As a noun, "pontão" means: cada um dos dois paus fortes que formam uma espécie de ponte simples para passar um pequeno ribeiro
How do you pronounce "pontão"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pontão" is /pon.'toŋ/ ou /pʊn.'toŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "pontão" come from?
"pontão" 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.

Using “pontão”

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

  • The one correct Portuguese spelling is P-O-N-T-Ã-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /pon.'toŋ/ ou /pʊn.'toŋ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more Portuguese words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Portuguese words

Other uncommon Portuguese words near this rank

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