Which to use
“linha” and “lixa” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #582
- “linha” frequency rank
- #26,452
- “lixa” frequency rank
- 27034
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | linha | lixa |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | o que tem comprimento sem largura | diversas espécies de esqualos recebem este nome pela sua pele áspera e rugosa |
Where the eye mixes linha and lixa
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. linha runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against lixa's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses linha with lixa
A purely visual mix-up. linha (/ˈli.ɲɐ/) and lixa (/ˈli.ʃɐ/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27034, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
linha is recorded at frequency rank #582, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈli.ɲɐ/. lixa is at rank #26,452, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈli.ʃɐ/.
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 27034, this pair ranks #42,000 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of linha vs lixa
Shared letters: ail. Private to "linha": hn. Private to "lixa": x.
"linha" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "lixa" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "linha" for "lixa" ever safe?
Frequency check: "linha" vs "lixa" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "linha" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lixa" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #42,000 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "linha" and "lixa" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "liana vs lixa". 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 #42,000 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.