davsduraWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: da is a contraction, dura is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“da” is a contraction and “dura” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#8
“da” frequency rank
#2,319
“dura” frequency rank
2327
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature da dura
Definition contração da preposição de com o artigo definido a o mesmo que duração ('qualidade do que dura')

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set da and dura apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

2 ch
da
4 ch
dura

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: da is acontraction and duraanoun. On the page they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2327, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

da is recorded at frequency rank #8, classified as acontraction, pronounced /da/. dura is at rank #2,319, tagged as anoun.

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 2327, this pair ranks #73,094 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of da vs dura

Shared letters: ad. Private to "da": -. Private to "dura": ru.

"da" · 2 letters · shape CV  ·  "dura" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • duraddura · drua · duar · durra · udra

Frequency comparison

da#8
dura#2,319

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "da" and "dura" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "da" is a contraction and "dura" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "da" or "dura"?
"da" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8 in our Portuguese list, against #2,319 for "dura". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering da vs dura

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a contraction, it's “da”; for a noun, it's “dura”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “da” 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