cassarvscursarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#34,183
“cassar” frequency rank
#19,107
“cursar” frequency rank
53290
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cassar cursar
Definition impedir que produza efeitos, anular, revogar (direitos políticos, mandatos, licenças, etc.): seguir o curso de

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cassar and cursar apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
cassar
6 ch
cursar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. cassar (/ka.ˈsaɾ/) and cursar (/kuɾ.ˈsaɾ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53290, 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/. cursar is at rank #19,107, tagged as averb, pronounced /kuɾ.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 53290, this pair ranks #12,145 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of cassar vs cursar

Shared letters: acrs. Private to "cassar": -. Private to "cursar": u.

"cassar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "cursar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cassaracssar · casar · casasr · cassarr · cassra · ccassar · csasar
  • cursarccursar · crusar · curasr · currsar · cursarr · cursra · curssar · cusrar

Frequency comparison

cassar#34,183
cursar#19,107

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cassar" and "cursar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ka.ˈsaɾ/ versus /kuɾ.ˈsaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "cassar" or "cursar"?
"cursar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,107 in our Portuguese list, against #34,183 for "cassar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cassar vs cursar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cassar” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list