caladavscriadaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#9,304
“calada” frequency rank
#1,566
“criada” frequency rank
10870
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature calada criada
Definition ato ou efeito de calar-se feminino de criado.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set calada and criada apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
calada
6 ch
criada

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. calada (/kɐ.ˈla.dɐ/) and criada (/kɾi.ˈa.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 10870, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

calada is recorded at frequency rank #9,304, classified as anoun, pronounced /kɐ.ˈla.dɐ/. criada is at rank #1,566, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kɾi.ˈa.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 10870, this pair ranks #62,107 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of calada vs criada

Shared letters: acd. Private to "calada": l. Private to "criada": ir.

"calada" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "criada" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • caladaaclada · caalda · calaad · caladda · caldaa · callada · ccalada · claada
  • criadaccriada · cirada · craida · criaad · criadda · cridaa · crriada · rciada

Frequency comparison

calada#9,304
criada#1,566

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "calada" and "criada" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/kɐ.ˈla.dɐ/ versus /kɾi.ˈa.dɐ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "calada" or "criada"?
"criada" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,566 in our Portuguese list, against #9,304 for "calada". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering calada vs criada

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “calada” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list