dócil vs doi, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“dócil” is an adjective and “doi” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#30,118
“dócil” frequency rank: #13,272
“doi” frequency rank: 43390
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	dócil	doi
Definition	submisso	dois; representado pelo algarismo hindu-arábico 2

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch

dócil

3 ch

doi

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dócil is /ˈdɔ.siɫ/ while doi is /doj/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43390, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dócil is recorded at frequency rank #30,118, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈdɔ.siɫ/. doi is at rank #13,272, tagged as anum, pronounced /doj/.

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 43390, this pair ranks #22,250 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of dócil vs doi

Shared letters: di. Private to "dócil": cló. Private to "doi": o.

"dócil" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "doi" · 3 letters · shape CVV

Frequency comparison

dócil#30,118

doi#13,272

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dócil" and "doi" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "dócil" is an adjective and "doi" a num, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "dócil" or "doi"?

"doi" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,272 in our Portuguese list, against #30,118 for "dócil". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering dócil vs doi

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “dócil”; for a num, it's “doi”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dócil” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable