Which to use
“cavar” and “coçar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,601
- “cavar” frequency rank
- #23,956
- “coçar” frequency rank
- 47557
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cavar | coçar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | abrir ou revolver a terra com enxada ou sacho; escavar; sachar | esfregar com as unhas, ou com outro objeto, qualquer parte do corpo onde se sente comichão |
Where the eye mixes cavar and coçar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. cavar and coçar follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: cavar vs coçar
A purely visual mix-up. cavar (/kɐ.ˈvaɾ/) and coçar (/ku.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 47557, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cavar is recorded at frequency rank #23,601, classified as averb, pronounced /kɐ.ˈvaɾ/. coçar is at rank #23,956, tagged as averb, pronounced /ku.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 47557, this pair ranks #17,682 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of cavar vs coçar
Shared letters: acr. Private to "cavar": v. Private to "coçar": oç.
"cavar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "coçar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- cavar ← acvar · caavr · cavarr · cavra · cavvar · ccavar · cvaar
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cavar" and "coçar" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "cavar" or "coçar"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "cavar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "coçar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #17,682 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cavar" and "coçar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "clonar vs coçar". 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 #17,682 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.