Which to use
“abraçar” is a verb and “abraço” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,588
- “abraçar” frequency rank
- #3,952
- “abraço” frequency rank
- 11540
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abraçar | abraço |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | envolver com os braços | gesto de afeto no qual uma pessoa contorna com seus braços a outra pessoa, animal, objeto, etc., como forma de manifestar carinho, amizade, apoio, conforto, etc. |
Where the eye mixes abraçar and abraço
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. abraçar runs 7 letters (VCCVCVC) against abraço's 6 (VCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: abraçar vs abraço
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: abraçar is /ɐ.bɾɐ.ˈsaɾ/ while abraço is /aˈbɾa.su/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11540, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abraçar is recorded at frequency rank #7,588, classified as averb, pronounced /ɐ.bɾɐ.ˈsaɾ/. abraço is at rank #3,952, tagged as anoun, pronounced /aˈbɾa.su/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 11540, this pair ranks #61,281 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abraçar vs abraço
Shared letters: abrç. Private to "abraçar": -. Private to "abraço": o.
"abraçar" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC · "abraço" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "abraçar" and "abraço" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "abraçar" vs "abraço" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "abraçar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abraço" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #61,281 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abraçar" and "abraço" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abraçar vs aplacar". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #61,281 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.