Which to use
“espelhar” and “espetar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #38,695
- “espelhar” frequency rank
- #45,837
- “espetar” frequency rank
- 84532
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | espelhar | espetar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | refletir em um espelho | ato de cutucar com a ponta de algo |
Where the eye mixes espelhar and espetar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between espelhar and espetar
A purely visual mix-up. espelhar (/iʃ.pɨ.ˈʎaɾ/) and espetar (/iʃ.pɨ.ˈtaɾ/) 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 84532, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
espelhar is recorded at frequency rank #38,695, classified as averb, pronounced /iʃ.pɨ.ˈʎaɾ/. espetar is at rank #45,837, tagged as averb, pronounced /iʃ.pɨ.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 84532, this pair ranks #774 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of espelhar vs espetar
Shared letters: aeprs. Private to "espelhar": hl. Private to "espetar": t.
"espelhar" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "espetar" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "espelhar" and "espetar" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "espelhar" vs "espetar" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "espelhar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "espetar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #774 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "espelhar" and "espetar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "espetar vs espiar". 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 #774 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.