Which to use
“cru” and “cruel” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #14,555
- “cru” frequency rank
- #5,617
- “cruel” frequency rank
- 20172
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cru | cruel |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | que não foi cozido ou não foi cozido o suficiente | que tem prazer em fazer mal |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cru and cruel apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. cru (/ˈkɾu/) and cruel (/kɾu.ˈɛɫ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “cru” sits inside “cruel”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20172, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cru is recorded at frequency rank #14,555, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈkɾu/. cruel is at rank #5,617, tagged as anadj, pronounced /kɾu.ˈɛɫ/.
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 20172, this pair ranks #50,417 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cru vs cruel
Shared letters: cru. Private to "cru": -. Private to "cruel": el.
"cru" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "cruel" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- cruel ← ccruel · creul · crruel · cruell · crule · curel · rcuel
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cru" and "cruel" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "cru" or "cruel"?
Remembering cru vs cruel
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 “cru” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable