safevssaysWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,193
“safe” frequency rank
#31,967
“says” frequency rank
58160
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature safe says
Definition primeira ou terceira pessoa do presente subjuntivo de safar terceira pessoa do singular do presente do indicativo do verbo say:

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set safe and says apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
safe
4 ch
says

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. safe (/seɪf/, enPR: sāf) and says (/ˈsɛz/) 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 58160, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

safe is recorded at frequency rank #26,193, classified as averb, pronounced /seɪf/, enPR: sāf. says is at rank #31,967, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈsɛz/.

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 58160, this pair ranks #8,911 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of safe vs says

Shared letters: as. Private to "safe": ef. Private to "says": y.

"safe" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "says" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • safeasfe · saef · saffe · sfae · ssafe
  • saysasys · sasy · sayss · sayys · ssays · syas

Frequency comparison

safe#26,193
says#31,967

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "safe" and "says" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/seɪf/, enPR: sāf versus /ˈsɛz/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "safe" or "says"?
"safe" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,193 in our Portuguese list, against #31,967 for "says". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering safe vs says

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 “safe” 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