Which to use
“aperto” is a noun and “áspero” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #10,129
- “aperto” frequency rank
- #28,424
- “áspero” frequency rank
- 38553
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aperto | áspero |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ato de apertar | desagradável ao tato; rugoso |
Where the eye mixes aperto and áspero
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. aperto (VCVCCV) and áspero (VCCVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses aperto with áspero
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: aperto is /ɐ.ˈpeɾ.tu/ while áspero is /ˈaʃ.pɨ.ɾu/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 5 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38553, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aperto is recorded at frequency rank #10,129, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɐ.ˈpeɾ.tu/. áspero is at rank #28,424, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈaʃ.pɨ.ɾu/.
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 38553, this pair ranks #27,873 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of aperto vs áspero
Shared letters: eopr. Private to "aperto": at. Private to "áspero": sá.
"aperto" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCV · "áspero" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- aperto ← aeprto · aperot · aperrto · apertto · apetro · apperto · apreto · paerto
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "aperto" and "áspero" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "aperto" or "áspero" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "aperto" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "áspero" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #27,873 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aperto" and "áspero" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aero vs áspero". 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 #27,873 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.