Which to use
“empolgar” and “empregar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #46,293
- “empolgar” frequency rank
- #17,268
- “empregar” frequency rank
- 63561
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | empolgar | empregar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | agitar; causar vibração | contratar os serviços de alguém; dar emprego a; ter ou manter a seu serviço |
Where the eye mixes empolgar and empregar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. empolgar (VCCVCCVC) and empregar (VCCCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses empolgar with empregar
A purely visual mix-up. empolgar (/ẽ.poɫ.ˈɡaɾ/) and empregar (/ẽ.pɾɨ.ˈɡaɾ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63561, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
empolgar is recorded at frequency rank #46,293, classified as averb, pronounced /ẽ.poɫ.ˈɡaɾ/. empregar is at rank #17,268, tagged as averb, pronounced /ẽ.pɾɨ.ˈɡaɾ/.
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 63561, this pair ranks #6,138 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of empolgar vs empregar
Shared letters: aegmpr. Private to "empolgar": lo. Private to "empregar": -.
"empolgar" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "empregar" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "empolgar" and "empregar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "empolgar" vs "empregar" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "empolgar" and "empregar" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "empolgar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "empregar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #6,138 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "empolgar" and "empregar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "empregar vs esfregar". 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 #6,138 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.