Which to use
“desejar” and “despejar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,892
- “desejar” frequency rank
- #23,294
- “despejar” frequency rank
- 27186
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | desejar | despejar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | querer realizar algo | jogar fora (um líquido, por exemplo) de seu recipiente |
Where the eye mixes desejar and despejar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. desejar runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against despejar's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: desejar vs despejar
A purely visual mix-up. desejar (/dɨ.zɨ.ˈʒaɾ/) and despejar (/dɨʃ.pɨ.ˈʒaɾ/) 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 27186, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
desejar is recorded at frequency rank #3,892, classified as averb, pronounced /dɨ.zɨ.ˈʒaɾ/. despejar is at rank #23,294, tagged as averb, pronounced /dɨʃ.pɨ.ˈʒaɾ/.
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 27186, this pair ranks #41,825 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of desejar vs despejar
Shared letters: adejrs. Private to "desejar": -. Private to "despejar": p.
"desejar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "despejar" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "desejar" and "despejar" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "desejar" or "despejar"?
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 "desejar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "despejar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #41,825 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "desejar" and "despejar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "despejada vs despejar". 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 #41,825 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.