marcarvsmirarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,842
“marcar” frequency rank
#27,178
“mirar” frequency rank
30020
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature marcar mirar
Definition pôr uma marca ou sinal olhar para algo

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set marcar and mirar apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
marcar
5 ch
mirar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. marcar (/mɐɾ.ˈkaɾ/) and mirar (/mi.ˈɾaɾ/) 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 30020, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

marcar is recorded at frequency rank #2,842, classified as averb, pronounced /mɐɾ.ˈkaɾ/. mirar is at rank #27,178, tagged as averb, pronounced /mi.ˈɾaɾ/.

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 30020, this pair ranks #38,455 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of marcar vs mirar

Shared letters: amr. Private to "marcar": c. Private to "mirar": i.

"marcar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "mirar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • marcaramrcar · macrar · maracr · marcarr · marccar · marcra · marrcar · mmarcar
  • mirarimrar · miarr · mirarr · mirrar · mmirar · mriar

Frequency comparison

marcar#2,842
mirar#27,178

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "marcar" and "mirar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/mɐɾ.ˈkaɾ/ versus /mi.ˈɾaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "marcar" or "mirar"?
"marcar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,842 in our Portuguese list, against #27,178 for "mirar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering marcar vs mirar

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 “marcar” 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