entãovsentrarWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: então is a adverb, entrar is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“então” is an adverb and “entrar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#120
“então” frequency rank
#519
“entrar” frequency rank
639
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature então entrar
Definition naquele momento passar para dentro

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set então and entrar apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
então
6 ch
entrar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

então and entrar form a confusable pair in the Portuguese index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 639, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

então is recorded at frequency rank #120, classified as anadv, pronounced /ẽ.ˈtɐ̃w̃/. entrar is at rank #519, tagged as averb, pronounced /ẽ.ˈtɾaχ/ ouvir ^(fonte ?).

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 639, this pair ranks #75,032 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

então#120
entrar#519

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "então" and "entrar" be used interchangeably?
No, "então" and "entrar" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering então vs entrar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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