encaixarvsencantarWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#12,662
“encaixar” frequency rank
#27,460
“encantar” frequency rank
40122
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature encaixar encantar
Definition pôr em caixa ou em encaixe lançar encantamento ou magia sobre alguém; enfeitiçar alguém

Where the eye mixes encaixar and encantar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. encaixar (VCCVVCVC) and encantar (VCCVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

8 ch
encaixar
8 ch
encantar

Visual trap between encaixar and encantar

A purely visual mix-up. encaixar (/ẽ.kaj.ˈʃaɾ/) and encantar (/ẽ.kɐ̃.ˈtaɾ/) 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 40122, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

encaixar is recorded at frequency rank #12,662, classified as averb, pronounced /ẽ.kaj.ˈʃaɾ/. encantar is at rank #27,460, tagged as averb, pronounced /ẽ.kɐ̃.ˈtaɾ/.

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 40122, this pair ranks #26,037 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of encaixar vs encantar

Shared letters: acenr. Private to "encaixar": ix. Private to "encantar": t.

"encaixar" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCVC  ·  "encantar" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • encaixar ← ecnaixar · enacixar · encaiaxr · encaixarr · encaixra · encaixxar · encaxiar · enccaixar
  • encantar ← ecnantar · enacntar · encanatr · encanntar · encantarr · encantra · encanttar · encatnar

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "encaixar" for "encantar" ever safe?
No. They are said differently (/ẽ.kaj.ˈʃaɾ/ versus /ẽ.kɐ̃.ˈtaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "encaixar" vs "encantar" - which ranks higher?
"encaixar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,662 in our Portuguese list, against #27,460 for "encantar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "encaixar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "encantar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #26,037 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "encaixar" and "encantar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "encantar vs engatar". 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 #26,037 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list