decadênciavsdecênciaWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“decadência” and “decência” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#13,261
“decadência” frequency rank
#17,478
“decência” frequency rank
30739
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature decadência decência
Definition o ato ou efeito de cair num estado ou condição inferior ou pior; deterioração qualidade daquele ou daquilo que é decente

Where the eye mixes decadência and decência

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. decadência runs 10 letters (CVCVCVCCVV) against decência's 8 (CVCVCCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

10 ch
decadência
8 ch
decência

Look-alike desk: decadência vs decência

A purely visual mix-up. decadência (/dɨ.kɐ.ˈdẽ.sjɐ/) and decência (/dɨ.ˈsẽ.sjɐ/) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30739, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

decadência is recorded at frequency rank #13,261, classified as anoun, pronounced /dɨ.kɐ.ˈdẽ.sjɐ/. decência is at rank #17,478, tagged as anoun, pronounced /dɨ.ˈsẽ.sjɐ/.

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 30739, this pair ranks #37,537 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of decadência vs decência

Shared letters: acdeinê. Private to "decadência": -. Private to "decência": -.

"decadência" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVCCVV  ·  "decência" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVV

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "decadência" and "decência" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/dɨ.kɐ.ˈdẽ.sjɐ/ versus /dɨ.ˈsẽ.sjɐ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "decadência" or "decência"?
"decadência" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,261 in our Portuguese list, against #17,478 for "decência". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "decadência" and "decência" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "decadência" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "decência" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #37,537 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "decadência" and "decência" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decência vs demência". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #37,537 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list