otavsóticaConfusable pair

Quick tell: ota is a intj, ótica is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ota” is an intj and “ótica” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#31,082
“ota” frequency rank
#13,644
“ótica” frequency rank
44726
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ota ótica
Definition expressa regozijo pela dor ou sofrimento alheio ciência da visão

Where the eye mixes ota and ótica

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. ota runs 3 letters (VCV) against ótica's 5 (VCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

3 ch
ota
5 ch
ótica

Why the eye confuses ota with ótica

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ota is /ˈo.tɐ/ while ótica is /ˈɔ.ti.kɐ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (intj vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44726, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ota is recorded at frequency rank #31,082, classified as anintj, pronounced /ˈo.tɐ/. ótica is at rank #13,644, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɔ.ti.kɐ/.

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 44726, this pair ranks #20,703 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ota vs ótica

Shared letters: at. Private to "ota": o. Private to "ótica": ció.

"ota" · 3 letters · shape VCV  ·  "ótica" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "ota" for "ótica" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ota" is an intj and "ótica" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "ota" or "ótica"?
"ótica" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,644 in our Portuguese list, against #31,082 for "ota". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "ota" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ótica" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #20,703 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ota" and "ótica" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "oni vs ota". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #20,703 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list