Which to use
“esfriar” and “espiar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,052
- “esfriar” frequency rank
- #39,136
- “espiar” frequency rank
- 57188
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | esfriar | espiar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | tornar frio | observar alguém ou algo esforçando-se para não ser visto |
Where the eye mixes esfriar and espiar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses esfriar with espiar
A purely visual mix-up. esfriar (/iʃ.ˈfɾjaɾ/) and espiar (/iʃ.ˈpjaɾ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57188, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
esfriar is recorded at frequency rank #18,052, classified as averb, pronounced /iʃ.ˈfɾjaɾ/. espiar is at rank #39,136, tagged as averb, pronounced /iʃ.ˈpjaɾ/.
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 57188, this pair ranks #9,478 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of esfriar vs espiar
Shared letters: aeirs. Private to "esfriar": f. Private to "espiar": p.
"esfriar" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVVC · "espiar" · 6 letters · shape VCCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "esfriar" and "espiar" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "esfriar" or "espiar"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "esfriar" and "espiar" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "esfriar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "espiar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #9,478 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "esfriar" and "espiar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "espiar vs espinal". 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 #9,478 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.