Which to use
“pedir” and “pegar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #714
- “pedir” frequency rank
- #744
- “pegar” frequency rank
- 1458
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pedir | pegar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | solicitar | fazer aderir |
Where the eye mixes pedir and pegar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses pedir with pegar
A purely visual mix-up. pedir (/pɨ.ˈdiɾ/) and pegar (/pɨ.ˈɡaɾ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1458, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pedir is recorded at frequency rank #714, classified as averb, pronounced /pɨ.ˈdiɾ/. pegar is at rank #744, tagged as averb, pronounced /pɨ.ˈɡaɾ/.
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 1458, this pair ranks #74,118 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pedir vs pegar
Shared letters: epr. Private to "pedir": di. Private to "pegar": ag.
"pedir" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "pegar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "pedir" and "pegar" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "pedir" vs "pegar" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pedir" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pegar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #74,118 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pedir" and "pegar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pegar vs piegas". 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 #74,118 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.