Which to use
“contrato” and “controlo” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,356
- “contrato” frequency rank
- #3,608
- “controlo” frequency rank
- 4964
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contrato | controlo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ato ou efeito de contratar | o mesmo que controle |
Where the eye mixes contrato and controlo
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. contrato and controlo follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: contrato vs controlo
A purely visual mix-up. contrato (/kõ.ˈtɾa.tu/) and controlo (/kõ.ˈtɾo.lu/) 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 4964, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contrato is recorded at frequency rank #1,356, classified as anoun, pronounced /kõ.ˈtɾa.tu/. controlo is at rank #3,608, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kõ.ˈtɾo.lu/.
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 4964, this pair ranks #69,767 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of contrato vs controlo
Shared letters: cnort. Private to "contrato": a. Private to "controlo": l.
"contrato" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV · "controlo" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "contrato" and "controlo" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "contrato" or "controlo" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "contrato" and "controlo" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "contrato" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "controlo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #69,767 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contrato" and "controlo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contrapor vs contrato". 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 #69,767 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.