Which to use
“açude” and “ajuda” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,686
- “açude” frequency rank
- #360
- “ajuda” frequency rank
- 17046
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | açude | ajuda |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | construção destinada a represar as águas de um rio | ato ou efeito de ajudar |
Where the eye mixes açude and ajuda
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. açude and ajuda follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses açude with ajuda
A purely visual mix-up. açude (/ɐ.ˈsu.dɨ/) and ajuda (/a.ˈʒu.dɐ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17046, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
açude is recorded at frequency rank #16,686, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɐ.ˈsu.dɨ/. ajuda is at rank #360, tagged as anoun, pronounced /a.ˈʒu.dɐ/.
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 17046, this pair ranks #54,299 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of açude vs ajuda
Shared letters: adu. Private to "açude": eç. Private to "ajuda": j.
"açude" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV · "ajuda" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- ajuda ← ajdua · ajjuda · ajuad · ajudda · aujda · jauda
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "açude" for "ajuda" ever safe?
Frequency check: "açude" vs "ajuda" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "açude" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ajuda" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #54,299 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "açude" and "ajuda" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "acid vs açude". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #54,299 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.