pilarvspolaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#8,938
“pilar” frequency rank
#42,156
“pola” frequency rank
51094
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pilar pola
Definition coluna de sustentação de edifício ou estrutura; esteio, escora, suporte estaca

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pilar and pola apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
pilar
4 ch
pola

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. pilar (/pi.ˈlaɾ/) and pola (/'pɔ.la/ para o ramo da àrvore) 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 51094, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pilar is recorded at frequency rank #8,938, classified as anoun, pronounced /pi.ˈlaɾ/. pola is at rank #42,156, tagged as anoun, pronounced /'pɔ.la/ para o ramo da àrvore.

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 51094, this pair ranks #13,914 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of pilar vs pola

Shared letters: alp. Private to "pilar": ir. Private to "pola": o.

"pilar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "pola" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pilariplar · pialr · pilarr · pillar · pilra · pliar · ppilar
  • polaopla · ploa · poal · polla · ppola

Frequency comparison

pilar#8,938
pola#42,156

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pilar" and "pola" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/pi.ˈlaɾ/ versus /'pɔ.la/ para o ramo da àrvore) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "pilar" or "pola"?
"pilar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,938 in our Portuguese list, against #42,156 for "pola". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering pilar vs pola

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 “pilar” 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