isolavsisolarWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: isola is a noun, isolar is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“isola” is a noun and “isolar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#25,021
“isola” frequency rank
#14,628
“isolar” frequency rank
39649
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature isola isolar
Definition ilha separar de outros; deixar só, solitário

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set isola and isolar apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
isola
6 ch
isolar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: isola is /ˈi.zo.la/. while isolar is /i.zu.ˈlaɾ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “isola” sits inside “isolar”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39649, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

isola is recorded at frequency rank #25,021, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈi.zo.la/.. isolar is at rank #14,628, tagged as averb, pronounced /i.zu.ˈlaɾ/.

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 39649, this pair ranks #26,566 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of isola vs isolar

Shared letters: ailos. Private to "isola": -. Private to "isolar": r.

"isola" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV  ·  "isolar" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • isolaiosla · isloa · isoal · isolla · issola · siola
  • isolarioslar · isloar · isoalr · isolarr · isollar · isolra · issolar · siolar

Frequency comparison

isola#25,021
isolar#14,628

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "isola" and "isolar" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "isola" is a noun and "isolar" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "isola" or "isolar"?
"isolar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,628 in our Portuguese list, against #25,021 for "isola". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering isola vs isolar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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