Which to use
“chau” and “ciao” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #49,350
- “chau” frequency rank
- #47,244
- “ciao” frequency rank
- 96594
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | chau | ciao |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | até logo; adeus! | olá |
Where the eye mixes chau and ciao
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. chau (CCVV) and ciao (CVVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: chau vs ciao
A purely visual mix-up. chau (/ʃaʊ/) and ciao ([ˈtʃaː.o], /ˈtʃao/) 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 96594, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
chau is recorded at frequency rank #49,350, classified as anintj, pronounced /ʃaʊ/. ciao is at rank #47,244, tagged as anintj, pronounced [ˈtʃaː.o], /ˈtʃao/.
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 96594, this pair ranks #38 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of chau vs ciao
Shared letters: ac. Private to "chau": hu. Private to "ciao": io.
"chau" · 4 letters · shape CCVV · "ciao" · 4 letters · shape CVVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "chau" for "ciao" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "chau" or "ciao" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "chau" and "ciao" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "chau" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ciao" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #38 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "chau" and "ciao" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cham vs chau". 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 #38 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.