calçarvscoçarConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#37,677
“calçar” frequency rank
#23,956
“coçar” frequency rank
61633
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature calçar coçar
Definition transitivo esfregar com as unhas, ou com outro objeto, qualquer parte do corpo onde se sente comichão

Where the eye mixes calçar and coçar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. calçar runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against coçar's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
calçar
5 ch
coçar

Why the eye confuses calçar with coçar

A purely visual mix-up. calçar (/kaɫ.ˈsaɾ/) and coçar (/ku.ˈsaɾ/) 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 61633, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

calçar is recorded at frequency rank #37,677, classified as averb, pronounced /kaɫ.ˈsaɾ/. coçar is at rank #23,956, tagged as averb, pronounced /ku.ˈsaɾ/.

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 61633, this pair ranks #7,038 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of calçar vs coçar

Shared letters: acrç. Private to "calçar": l. Private to "coçar": o.

"calçar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "coçar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "calçar" and "coçar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (/kaɫ.ˈsaɾ/ versus /ku.ˈsaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "calçar" vs "coçar" - which ranks higher?
"coçar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,956 in our Portuguese list, against #37,677 for "calçar". 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 "calçar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "coçar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #7,038 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "calçar" and "coçar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "calçar vs caução". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #7,038 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