Which to use
“bainha” and “banda” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #30,011
- “bainha” frequency rank
- #908
- “banda” frequency rank
- 30919
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bainha | banda |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | estojo de metal ou couro onde se enfia a lâmina de uma arma branca | parte lateral de um objeto |
Where the eye mixes bainha and banda
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. bainha runs 6 letters (CVVCCV) against banda's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between bainha and banda
A purely visual mix-up. bainha (/bɐ.ˈi.ɲɐ/) and banda (/ˈbɐ̃.dɐ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30919, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bainha is recorded at frequency rank #30,011, classified as anoun, pronounced /bɐ.ˈi.ɲɐ/. banda is at rank #908, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈbɐ̃.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 30919, this pair ranks #37,306 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of bainha vs banda
Shared letters: abn. Private to "bainha": hi. Private to "banda": d.
"bainha" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV · "banda" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bainha" and "banda" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "bainha" or "banda"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "bainha" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "banda" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #37,306 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bainha" and "banda" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "baila vs bainha". 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 #37,306 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.