Which to use
“reflexão” is a noun and “reflexo” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,106
- “reflexão” frequency rank
- #6,806
- “reflexo” frequency rank
- 10912
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | reflexão | reflexo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ato de perceber, reconsiderar, reformular, imaginar ou repensar uma ideia ou ponto de vista | refletido |
Where the eye mixes reflexão and reflexo
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. reflexão runs 8 letters (CVCCVCVV) against reflexo's 7 (CVCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses reflexão with reflexo
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: reflexão is /Rɨ.flɛ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/ while reflexo is /ʁe.ˈflɛk.sʊ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10912, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
reflexão is recorded at frequency rank #4,106, classified as anoun, pronounced /Rɨ.flɛ.ˈsɐ̃w̃/. reflexo is at rank #6,806, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ʁe.ˈflɛk.sʊ/.
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 10912, this pair ranks #62,054 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of reflexão vs reflexo
Shared letters: eflorx. Private to "reflexão": ã. Private to "reflexo": -.
"reflexão" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVV · "reflexo" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- reflexo ← erflexo · refelxo · refflexo · refleox · reflexxo · refllexo · reflxeo · relfexo
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "reflexão" and "reflexo" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "reflexão" or "reflexo" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "reflexão" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "reflexo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #62,054 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "reflexão" and "reflexo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "reflexivo vs reflexo". 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 #62,054 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.