Which to use
“engano” and “ensaio” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,845
- “engano” frequency rank
- #3,472
- “ensaio” frequency rank
- 9317
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | engano | ensaio |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | erro | meio empregado para testar se algo convém ao fim a que se destina |
Where the eye mixes engano and ensaio
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. engano (VCCVCV) and ensaio (VCCVVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: engano vs ensaio
A purely visual mix-up. engano (/ẽ.ˈɡɐ.nu/) and ensaio (/ẽ.ˈsaj.u/) 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 9317, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
engano is recorded at frequency rank #5,845, classified as anoun, pronounced /ẽ.ˈɡɐ.nu/. ensaio is at rank #3,472, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ẽ.ˈsaj.u/.
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 9317, this pair ranks #64,146 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of engano vs ensaio
Shared letters: aeno. Private to "engano": g. Private to "ensaio": is.
"engano" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV · "ensaio" · 6 letters · shape VCCVVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "engano" for "ensaio" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "engano" or "ensaio" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "engano" and "ensaio" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "engano" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ensaio" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #64,146 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "engano" and "ensaio" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "engano vs engodo". 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 #64,146 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.