Which to use
“cap” is a noun and “cem” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,259
- “cap” frequency rank
- #3,188
- “cem” frequency rank
- 10447
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cap | cem |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | bode ou carneiro, especialmente velho ou castrado | número equivalente a dez dezenas; cardinalidade de um conjunto que contenha uma centena de elementos distintos; representado pelo símbolo 100 (algarismos arábicos) ou C (algarismos romanos) |
Where the eye mixes cap and cem
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses cap with cem
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cap is /t͡sap/ while cem is /ˈsɐ̃j̃/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10447, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cap is recorded at frequency rank #7,259, classified as anoun, pronounced /t͡sap/. cem is at rank #3,188, tagged as anum, pronounced /ˈsɐ̃j̃/.
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 10447, this pair ranks #62,655 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cap vs cem
Shared letters: c. Private to "cap": ap. Private to "cem": em.
"cap" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "cem" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "cap" and "cem" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "cap" or "cem" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "cap" and "cem" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "cap" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #62,655 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cap" and "cem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cap vs chau". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #62,655 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.