Which to use
“ampliação” and “aplicação” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,419
- “ampliação” frequency rank
- #2,706
- “aplicação” frequency rank
- 11125
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ampliação | aplicação |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ato ou efeito de ampliar ou alargar | ato de aplicar |
Where the eye mixes ampliação and aplicação
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. ampliação (VCCCVVCVV) and aplicação (VCCVCVCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses ampliação with aplicação
A purely visual mix-up. ampliação (/ɐ̃.pljɐ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/) and aplicação (/ɐ.pli.kɐ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/) 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 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11125, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ampliação is recorded at frequency rank #8,419, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɐ̃.pljɐ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/. aplicação is at rank #2,706, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɐ.pli.kɐ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/.
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 11125, this pair ranks #61,795 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ampliação vs aplicação
Shared letters: ailopãç. Private to "ampliação": m. Private to "aplicação": c.
"ampliação" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVVCVV · "aplicação" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ampliação" and "aplicação" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "ampliação" or "aplicação" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ampliação" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aplicação" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #61,795 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ampliação" and "aplicação" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ampliação vs amputação". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #61,795 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.