radical

/Rɐ.di.ˈkaɫ/

//Rɐ.di.ˈkaɫ// adj

The verdict

“radical” is a regularly-used Portuguese word, ranked #5,040 in Portuguese word frequency and used as an adjective.

#5,040
frequency rank, Portuguese
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - relativo a raiz

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

radical vs racial
71% similar
radical vs radiação
50% similar
radical vs radicado
75% similar

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

Key facts for radical
PropertyValue
Headwordradical
LanguagePortuguese
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/Rɐ.di.ˈkaɫ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#5,040
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “radical” 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). radical 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 radical is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /Rɐ.di.ˈkaɫ/. Corpus data places it at rank #5,040 in overall Portuguese word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. 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 radical, with forms such as "ardical", "radcial", and "raddical". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "racial", "radiação", "radicado", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct Portuguese form is radical, spelled R-A-D-I-C-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    relativo a raiz
  2. 2
    relativo à essência de algo
  3. 3
    relativo à raiz de uma palavra
  4. 4
    relativo à extração da raiz de um número
  5. 5
    absoluto, que vai até o fim
  6. 6
    que preconiza o radicalismo; radicalista

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ardical,radcial,raddical,radiacl,radicall,radiccal,radicla,raidcal,rdaical,rradical

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ardical2radcial2raddical1radiacl2radicall1radiccal1radicla2raidcal2
Edit distance from "radical"

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 "radical"?
"radical" is spelled R-A-D-I-C-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is /Rɐ.di.ˈkaɫ/.
What does "radical" mean?
As an adjective, "radical" means: relativo a raiz
What words are commonly confused with "radical"?
"radical" is commonly confused with "racial", "radiação", "radicado". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "radical"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "radical" is /Rɐ.di.ˈkaɫ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "radical" come from?
"radical" 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 “radical”

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

  • The one correct Portuguese spelling is R-A-D-I-C-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /Rɐ.di.ˈkaɫ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “racial” - see the side-by-side comparison. radical vs racial
  • 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