Which to use
“paleta” and “pateta” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,759
- “paleta” frequency rank
- #26,497
- “pateta” frequency rank
- 50256
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | paleta | pateta |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | chapa, geralmente ovalada e de madeira, com um orifício para o polegar, sobre a qual os pintores colocam e misturam as tintas; palheta | pessoa boba |
Where the eye mixes paleta and pateta
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between paleta and pateta
A purely visual mix-up. paleta (/pɐ.ˈle.tɐ/) and pateta (/pa.ˈtɛ.tɐ/) 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 - l in “paleta” becomes t in “pateta”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50256, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
paleta is recorded at frequency rank #23,759, classified as anoun, pronounced /pɐ.ˈle.tɐ/. pateta is at rank #26,497, tagged as anoun, pronounced /pa.ˈtɛ.tɐ/.
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 50256, this pair ranks #14,718 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of paleta vs pateta
Shared letters: aept. Private to "paleta": l. Private to "pateta": -.
"paleta" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "pateta" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "paleta" for "pateta" ever safe?
Which is more common, "paleta" or "pateta"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "paleta" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pateta" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #14,718 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "paleta" and "pateta" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pale vs paleta". 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 #14,718 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.