cogitar vs constar, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#34,204
“cogitar” frequency rank: #12,409
“constar” frequency rank: 46613
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	cogitar	constar
Definition	pensar profundamente sobre; refletir acerca de; analisar, considerar, imaginar	estar escrito, incluído ou mencionado

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cogitar and constar apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch

cogitar

7 ch

constar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. cogitar (/ku.ʒi.ˈtaɾ/) and constar (/kõʃ.ˈtaɾ/) 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 46613, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cogitar is recorded at frequency rank #34,204, classified as averb, pronounced /ku.ʒi.ˈtaɾ/. constar is at rank #12,409, tagged as averb, pronounced /kõʃ.ˈtaɾ/.

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 46613, this pair ranks #18,692 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of cogitar vs constar

Shared letters: acort. Private to "cogitar": gi. Private to "constar": ns.

"cogitar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "constar" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

cogitar ← ccogitar · cgoitar · coggitar · cogiatr · cogitarr · cogitra · cogittar · cogtiar
constar ← cconstar · cnostar · connstar · consatr · consstar · constarr · constra · consttar

Frequency comparison

cogitar#34,204

constar#12,409

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cogitar" and "constar" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (/ku.ʒi.ˈtaɾ/ versus /kõʃ.ˈtaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "cogitar" or "constar"?

"constar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,409 in our Portuguese list, against #34,204 for "cogitar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cogitar vs constar

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 “cogitar” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable