Which to use
“leite” and “leste” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,711
- “leite” frequency rank
- #1,051
- “leste” frequency rank
- 2762
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | leite | leste |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | líquido branco segregado pelas glândulas mamárias, existentes nas fêmeas dos mamíferos | um dos pontos cardeais, oposto ao oeste, equivalente ao lado direito |
Where the eye mixes leite and leste
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between leite and leste
A purely visual mix-up. leite (/ˈlej.te/) and leste (/ˈlɛʃ.tɨ/) 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 a single letter - i in “leite” becomes s in “leste”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2762, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
leite is recorded at frequency rank #1,711, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈlej.te/. leste is at rank #1,051, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈlɛʃ.tɨ/.
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 2762, this pair ranks #72,512 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of leite vs leste
Shared letters: elt. Private to "leite": i. Private to "leste": s.
"leite" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV · "leste" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "leite" and "leste" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "leite" or "leste"?
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 "leite" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "leste" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #72,512 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "leite" and "leste" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "least vs leste". 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 #72,512 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.