ratovsrazãoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: rato is a adjective, razão is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

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

#5,246
“rato” frequency rank
#793
“razão” frequency rank
6039
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature rato razão
Definition ratificado; de verdade comprovada faculdade de avaliar, julgar, ponderar ideias, raciocinar, inteligir

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
rato
5 ch
razão

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

rato and razão form a confusable pair in the Portuguese index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6039, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

rato is recorded at frequency rank #5,246, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈRa.tu/. razão is at rank #793, tagged as anoun, pronounced /χa.ˈzãw/.

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 6039, this pair ranks #68,485 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

rato#5,246
razão#793

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "rato" and "razão" be used interchangeably?
No, "rato" and "razão" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering rato vs razão

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “rato”; for a noun, it's “razão”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “rato” 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