decidirvsdefinirTell them apart

Which to use

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

#2,367
“decidir” frequency rank
#4,462
“definir” frequency rank
6829
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature decidir definir
Definition determinar dar ou criar uma definição

Where the eye mixes decidir and definir

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. decidir and definir follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

7 ch
decidir
7 ch
definir

Look-alike desk: decidir vs definir

A purely visual mix-up. decidir (/dɨ.sɨ.ˈdiɾ/) and definir (/dɨ.fɨ.ˈniɾ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6829, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

decidir is recorded at frequency rank #2,367, classified as averb, pronounced /dɨ.sɨ.ˈdiɾ/. definir is at rank #4,462, tagged as averb, pronounced /dɨ.fɨ.ˈniɾ/.

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 6829, this pair ranks #67,492 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of decidir vs definir

Shared letters: deir. Private to "decidir": c. Private to "definir": fn.

"decidir" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "definir" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • decidir ← dceidir · ddecidir · deccidir · decdiir · deciddir · decidirr · decidri · deciidr
  • definir ← ddefinir · deffinir · defiinr · definirr · definnir · definri · defniir · deifnir

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "decidir" and "definir" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (/dɨ.sɨ.ˈdiɾ/ versus /dɨ.fɨ.ˈniɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "decidir" vs "definir" - which ranks higher?
"decidir" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,367 in our Portuguese list, against #4,462 for "definir". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "decidir" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "definir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #67,492 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "decidir" and "definir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "definir vs demitir". 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 #67,492 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