Which to use
“cassar” and “cavar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,183
- “cassar” frequency rank
- #23,601
- “cavar” frequency rank
- 57784
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cassar | cavar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | impedir que produza efeitos, anular, revogar (direitos políticos, mandatos, licenças, etc.): | abrir ou revolver a terra com enxada ou sacho; escavar; sachar |
Where the eye mixes cassar and cavar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. cassar runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against cavar's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses cassar with cavar
A purely visual mix-up. cassar (/ka.ˈsaɾ/) and cavar (/kɐ.ˈvaɾ/) 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 57784, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cassar is recorded at frequency rank #34,183, classified as averb, pronounced /ka.ˈsaɾ/. cavar is at rank #23,601, tagged as averb, pronounced /kɐ.ˈvaɾ/.
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 57784, this pair ranks #9,132 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of cassar vs cavar
Shared letters: acr. Private to "cassar": s. Private to "cavar": v.
"cassar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "cavar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cassar" for "cavar" ever safe?
Which is more common, "cassar" or "cavar"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "cassar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cavar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #9,132 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cassar" and "cavar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cassada vs cassar". 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 #9,132 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.