cancelarvscautelarWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: cancelar is a verb, cautelar is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“cancelar” is a verb and “cautelar” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,388
“cancelar” frequency rank
#22,246
“cautelar” frequency rank
27634
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cancelar cautelar
Definition desmarcar um compromisso relativo a cautela

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cancelar and cautelar apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
cancelar
8 ch
cautelar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: cancelar is averb and cautelaranadjective. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27634, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cancelar is recorded at frequency rank #5,388, classified as averb, pronounced /kɐ̃.seˈla(ʁ)/. cautelar is at rank #22,246, tagged as anadj.

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 27634, this pair ranks #41,317 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of cancelar vs cautelar

Shared letters: acelr. Private to "cancelar": n. Private to "cautelar": tu.

"cancelar" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "cautelar" · 8 letters · shape CVVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cancelaracncelar · cacnelar · canccelar · cancealr · cancelarr · cancellar · cancelra · canclear
  • cautelaracutelar · catuelar · cauetlar · cautealr · cautelarr · cautellar · cautelra · cautlear

Frequency comparison

cancelar#5,388
cautelar#22,246

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cancelar" and "cautelar" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "cancelar" is a verb and "cautelar" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "cancelar" or "cautelar"?
"cancelar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,388 in our Portuguese list, against #22,246 for "cautelar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cancelar vs cautelar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “cancelar”; for an adjective, it's “cautelar”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cancelar” 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