Which to use
“fartar” and “formar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #48,928
- “fartar” frequency rank
- #3,014
- “formar” frequency rank
- 51942
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fartar | formar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | saciar a fome ou a sede a | dar forma a; constituir; compor |
Where the eye mixes fartar and formar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses fartar with formar
A purely visual mix-up. fartar (/fɐɾ.ˈtaɾ/) and formar (/fuɾ.ˈmaɾ/) 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 51942, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fartar is recorded at frequency rank #48,928, classified as averb, pronounced /fɐɾ.ˈtaɾ/. formar is at rank #3,014, tagged as averb, pronounced /fuɾ.ˈmaɾ/.
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 51942, this pair ranks #13,170 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of fartar vs formar
Shared letters: afr. Private to "fartar": t. Private to "formar": mo.
"fartar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "formar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fartar" for "formar" ever safe?
Which is more common, "fartar" or "formar"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "fartar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "formar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #13,170 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fartar" and "formar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fartar vs furtar". 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 #13,170 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.