doentevsdoneWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: doente is a adjective, done is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“doente” is an adjective and “done” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,318
“doente” frequency rank
#23,299
“done” frequency rank
25617
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature doente done
Definition que tem a saúde alterada particípio do verbo do

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set doente and done apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
doente
4 ch
done

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: doente is anadjective and doneaverb. On the page they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25617, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

doente is recorded at frequency rank #2,318, classified as anadj. done is at rank #23,299, tagged as averb, pronounced /dʌn/; /dɐn/; /dʊn/.

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 25617, this pair ranks #43,673 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of doente vs done

Shared letters: deno. Private to "doente": t. Private to "done": -.

"doente" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV  ·  "done" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • doenteddoente · deonte · doenet · doennte · doentte · doetne · donete · odente
  • doneddone · dnoe · doen · donne

Frequency comparison

doente#2,318
done#23,299

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "doente" and "done" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "doente" is an adjective and "done" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "doente" or "done"?
"doente" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,318 in our Portuguese list, against #23,299 for "done". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering doente vs done

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “doente”; for a verb, it's “done”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “doente” 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