carasvscataConfusable pair

Quick tell: caras is a adjective, cata is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“caras” is an adjective and “cata” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,736
“caras” frequency rank
#31,681
“cata” frequency rank
33417
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature caras cata
Definition feminino plural de caro busca

Letter map: caras vs cata

Shared letters muted; letters that set caras and cata apart highlighted. Shared run: 3.

5 ch
caras
4 ch
cata

Grammar separator: caras vs cata

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: caras is anadjective and cataanoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33417, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

caras is recorded at frequency rank #1,736, classified as anadj. cata is at rank #31,681, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈka.tɐ/.

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 33417, this pair ranks #34,115 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of caras vs cata

Shared letters: ac. Private to "caras": rs. Private to "cata": t.

"caras" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "cata" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • carasacras · caars · carass · carras · carsa · ccaras · craas
  • cataacta · caat · catta · ccata · ctaa

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "caras" for "cata" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "caras" is an adjective and "cata" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "caras" or "cata" show up more?
"caras" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,736 in our Portuguese list, against #31,681 for "cata". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

You've compared "caras" and "cata". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "caras" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "cata" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #34,115 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "caras" and "cata" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cata vs copta". 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 #34,115 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