docevsdócilWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,532
“doce” frequency rank
#30,118
“dócil” frequency rank
31650
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature doce dócil
Definition que tem sabor agradável, como o do açúcar, do mel ou qualquer outro adoçante submisso

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set doce and dócil apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
doce
5 ch
dócil

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. doce (/ˈdo.sɨ/) and dócil (/ˈdɔ.siɫ/) 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 31650, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

doce is recorded at frequency rank #1,532, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈdo.sɨ/. dócil is at rank #30,118, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈdɔ.siɫ/.

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 31650, this pair ranks #36,373 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of doce vs dócil

Shared letters: cd. Private to "doce": eo. Private to "dócil": iló.

"doce" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "dócil" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • docedcoe · ddoce · docce · doec · odce

Frequency comparison

doce#1,532
dócil#30,118

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "doce" and "dócil" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ˈdo.sɨ/ versus /ˈdɔ.siɫ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "doce" or "dócil"?
"doce" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,532 in our Portuguese list, against #30,118 for "dócil". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering doce vs dócil

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 “doce” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list