rádiovsrápidoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: rádio is a noun, rápido is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“rádio” is a noun and “rápido” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#857
“rádio” frequency rank
#811
“rápido” frequency rank
1668
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature rádio rápido
Definition elemento químico de símbolo Ra, possui o número atômico 88 e massa atômica relativa 226,025 u; é um metal alcalino terroso, branco prateado, altamente radioativo; ocorre em todos os minérios de urânio, e é produzido por decaimento radioativo; é utilizado na medicina para tratamento de câncer e, em laboratórios, como fonte de neutrons para análise de materiais que anda depressa

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
rádio
6 ch
rápido

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: rádio is anoun and rápidoanadjective. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1668, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

rádio is recorded at frequency rank #857, classified as anoun. rápido is at rank #811, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈRa.pi.du/.

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 1668, this pair ranks #73,853 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of rádio vs rápido

Shared letters: diorá. Private to "rádio": -. Private to "rápido": p.

"rádio" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV  ·  "rápido" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Frequency comparison

rádio#857
rápido#811

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "rádio" and "rápido" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "rádio" is a noun and "rápido" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "rádio" or "rápido"?
"rápido" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #811 in our Portuguese list, against #857 for "rádio". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering rádio vs rápido

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “rádio”; for an adjective, it's “rápido”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “rádio” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list