Which to use
“destruição” is a noun and “destruído” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,872
- “destruição” frequency rank
- #6,051
- “destruído” frequency rank
- 8923
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | destruição | destruído |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ato ou efeito de destruir | que se destruiu |
Where the eye mixes destruição and destruído
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. destruição runs 10 letters (CVCCCVVCVV) against destruído's 9 (CVCCCVVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses destruição with destruído
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: destruição is /dɨʃ.tɾu.i.ˈsɐ̃w̃/ while destruído is /dɨʃ.tɾu.ˈi.du/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8923, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
destruição is recorded at frequency rank #2,872, classified as anoun, pronounced /dɨʃ.tɾu.i.ˈsɐ̃w̃/. destruído is at rank #6,051, tagged as anadj, pronounced /dɨʃ.tɾu.ˈi.du/.
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 8923, this pair ranks #64,681 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of destruição vs destruído
Shared letters: deorstu. Private to "destruição": iãç. Private to "destruído": í.
"destruição" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVVCVV · "destruído" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "destruição" and "destruído" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "destruição" or "destruído"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "destruição" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "destruído" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #64,681 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "destruição" and "destruído" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "destruído vs destruidora". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #64,681 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.