kavskdeWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ka is a noun, kde is an adverb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ka” is a noun and “kde” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#11,901
“ka” frequency rank
#39,708
“kde” frequency rank
51609
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ka kde
Definition nome dos kana か e カ onde

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ka and kde apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

2 ch
ka
3 ch
kde

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: ka is anoun and kdeanadverb. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51609, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ka is recorded at frequency rank #11,901, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈka/. kde is at rank #39,708, tagged as anadv.

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 51609, this pair ranks #13,467 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of ka vs kde

Shared letters: k. Private to "ka": a. Private to "kde": de.

"ka" · 2 letters · shape CV  ·  "kde" · 3 letters · shape CCV

Frequency comparison

ka#11,901
kde#39,708

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ka" and "kde" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ka" is a noun and "kde" an adverb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "ka" or "kde"?
"ka" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,901 in our Portuguese list, against #39,708 for "kde". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ka vs kde

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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