Which to use
“curvo” is an adjective and “custo” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #37,736
- “curvo” frequency rank
- #1,773
- “custo” frequency rank
- 39509
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | curvo | custo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | em forma de arco | o quanto algo custa, o preço de algo |
Where the eye mixes curvo and custo
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between curvo and custo
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: curvo is /ˈkuɾ.vu/ while custo is /ˈkuʃ.tu/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39509, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
curvo is recorded at frequency rank #37,736, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈkuɾ.vu/. custo is at rank #1,773, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈkuʃ.tu/.
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 39509, this pair ranks #26,721 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of curvo vs custo
Shared letters: cou. Private to "curvo": rv. Private to "custo": st.
"curvo" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "custo" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "curvo" and "custo" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "curvo" or "custo" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "curvo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "custo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #26,721 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "curvo" and "custo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "curvado vs curvo". 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 #26,721 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.