Which to use
“contágio” is a noun and “contrário” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #24,272
- “contágio” frequency rank
- #1,026
- “contrário” frequency rank
- 25298
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contágio | contrário |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | transmissão ou propagação de doença por contato direto ou indireto | oposto |
Where the eye mixes contágio and contrário
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. contágio runs 8 letters (CVCCVCVV) against contrário's 9 (CVCCCVCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between contágio and contrário
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: contágio is /kõ.ˈta.ʒju/ while contrário is /kõ.ˈtɾa.ɾju/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25298, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contágio is recorded at frequency rank #24,272, classified as anoun, pronounced /kõ.ˈta.ʒju/. contrário is at rank #1,026, tagged as anadj, pronounced /kõ.ˈtɾa.ɾju/.
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 25298, this pair ranks #44,045 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of contágio vs contrário
Shared letters: cinotá. Private to "contágio": g. Private to "contrário": r.
"contágio" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVV · "contrário" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "contágio" and "contrário" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "contágio" or "contrário"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "contágio" and "contrário" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "contágio" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contrário" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #44,045 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contágio" and "contrário" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contágio vs contagioso". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #44,045 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.