bokvsbotaConfusable pair

Which to use

“bok” and “bota” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#41,372
“bok” frequency rank
#8,725
“bota” frequency rank
50097
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature bok bota
Definition bode calçado que cobre o pé e parte da canela

Where the eye mixes bok and bota

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. bok runs 3 letters (CVC) against bota's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

3 ch
bok
4 ch
bota

Look-alike desk: bok vs bota

A purely visual mix-up. bok (/bɔk/) and bota (/ˈbɔ.tə/) 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 50097, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

bok is recorded at frequency rank #41,372, classified as anoun, pronounced /bɔk/. bota is at rank #8,725, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈbɔ.tə/.

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 50097, this pair ranks #14,886 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of bok vs bota

Shared letters: bo. Private to "bok": k. Private to "bota": at.

"bok" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "bota" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • bota ← bbota · botta · btoa · obta

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "bok" for "bota" ever safe?
No. They are said differently (/bɔk/ versus /ˈbɔ.tə/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "bok" or "bota"?
"bota" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,725 in our Portuguese list, against #41,372 for "bok". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "bok" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "bota" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #14,886 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "bok" and "bota" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bok vs bué". 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 #14,886 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list