Which to use
“desatar” and “desativar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #48,865
- “desatar” frequency rank
- #15,306
- “desativar” frequency rank
- 64171
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | desatar | desativar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | desprender | suprimir a atividade |
Where the eye mixes desatar and desativar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. desatar runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against desativar's 9 (CVCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: desatar vs desativar
A purely visual mix-up. desatar (/dɨ.zɐ.ˈtaɾ/) and desativar (/dɨ.za.ti.ˈvaɾ/) 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 64171, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
desatar is recorded at frequency rank #48,865, classified as averb, pronounced /dɨ.zɐ.ˈtaɾ/. desativar is at rank #15,306, tagged as averb, pronounced /dɨ.za.ti.ˈvaɾ/.
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 64171, this pair ranks #5,886 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of desatar vs desativar
Shared letters: aderst. Private to "desatar": -. Private to "desativar": iv.
"desatar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "desativar" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "desatar" and "desativar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "desatar" or "desativar"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "desatar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "desativar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #5,886 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "desatar" and "desativar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "desatar vs devastar". 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 #5,886 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.