declinarvsdelirarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#38,656
“declinar” frequency rank
#37,744
“delirar” frequency rank
76400
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature declinar delirar
Definition eximir-se a, desistir de, recusar (convites, encargos, etc.) estar em delírio

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set declinar and delirar apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
declinar
7 ch
delirar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. declinar (/dɨ.kli.ˈnaɾ/) and delirar (/dɨ.li.ˈɾaɾ/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 76400, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

declinar is recorded at frequency rank #38,656, classified as averb, pronounced /dɨ.kli.ˈnaɾ/. delirar is at rank #37,744, tagged as averb, pronounced /dɨ.li.ˈɾaɾ/.

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 76400, this pair ranks #2,100 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of declinar vs delirar

Shared letters: adeilr. Private to "declinar": cn. Private to "delirar": -.

"declinar" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "delirar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • declinardcelinar · ddeclinar · decclinar · decilnar · declianr · declinarr · declinnar · declinra
  • delirarddelirar · deilrar · deliarr · delirarr · delirra · delirrar · dellirar · delriar

Frequency comparison

declinar#38,656
delirar#37,744

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "declinar" and "delirar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/dɨ.kli.ˈnaɾ/ versus /dɨ.li.ˈɾaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "declinar" or "delirar"?
"delirar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #37,744 in our Portuguese list, against #38,656 for "declinar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering declinar vs delirar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “declinar” 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