cruzvscruzarWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: cruz is a noun, cruzar is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“cruz” is a noun and “cruzar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,606
“cruz” frequency rank
#8,174
“cruzar” frequency rank
9780
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cruz cruzar
Definition símbolo formado por dois planos, normalmente linhas, um orientado horizontalmente e outro na vertical, cruzando-se e formando um ângulo de 90 graus; a linha é, por vezes, maior para baixo do cruzamento dispor em cruz

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cruz and cruzar apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
cruz
6 ch
cruzar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cruz is /ˈkɾuʃ/ while cruzar is /kɾu.ˈzaɾ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “cruz” sits inside “cruzar”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9780, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cruz is recorded at frequency rank #1,606, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈkɾuʃ/. cruzar is at rank #8,174, tagged as averb, pronounced /kɾu.ˈzaɾ/.

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 9780, this pair ranks #63,532 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of cruz vs cruzar

Shared letters: cruz. Private to "cruz": -. Private to "cruzar": a.

"cruz" · 4 letters · shape CCVC  ·  "cruzar" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cruzccruz · crruz · cruzz · crzu · curz · rcuz
  • cruzarccruzar · crruzar · cruazr · cruzarr · cruzra · cruzzar · crzuar · curzar

Frequency comparison

cruz#1,606
cruzar#8,174

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cruz" and "cruzar" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "cruz" is a noun and "cruzar" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "cruz" or "cruzar"?
"cruz" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,606 in our Portuguese list, against #8,174 for "cruzar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cruz vs cruzar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “cruz”; for a verb, it's “cruzar”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cruz” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list