lançavslinceWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“lança” and “lince” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#2,380
“lança” frequency rank
#40,653
“lince” frequency rank
43033
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lança lince
Definition uma arma longa para ser arremessada, que consiste de uma haste de madeira à qual é ligada uma ponta de metal designação comum a três espécies de mamíferos do gênero Felis, da família dos felídeos, com cauda curta ou muito curta e tufos de pelos nas orelhas

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lança and lince apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
lança
5 ch
lince

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. lança (/ˈlɐ̃.sɐ/) and lince (/ˈlĩ.sɨ/) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43033, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lança is recorded at frequency rank #2,380, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈlɐ̃.sɐ/. lince is at rank #40,653, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈlĩ.sɨ/.

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 43033, this pair ranks #22,652 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of lança vs lince

Shared letters: ln. Private to "lança": . Private to "lince": cei.

"lança" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "lince" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • linceilnce · licne · lincce · linec · linnce · llince · lnice

Frequency comparison

lança#2,380
lince#40,653

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lança" and "lince" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ˈlɐ̃.sɐ/ versus /ˈlĩ.sɨ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "lança" or "lince"?
"lança" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,380 in our Portuguese list, against #40,653 for "lince". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering lança vs lince

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lança” 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