Which to use
“selim” is a noun and “semi” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #43,648
- “selim” frequency rank
- #4,431
- “semi” frequency rank
- 48079
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | selim | semi |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sela pequena e rasa (sem arções) | semear, plantar |
Where the eye mixes selim and semi
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. selim runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against semi's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses selim with semi
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: selim is /sɨ.ˈlĩ/ while semi is /ˈsɛ.mi/.. 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 verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48079, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
selim is recorded at frequency rank #43,648, classified as anoun, pronounced /sɨ.ˈlĩ/. semi is at rank #4,431, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈsɛ.mi/..
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 48079, this pair ranks #17,129 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of selim vs semi
Shared letters: eims. Private to "selim": l. Private to "semi": -.
"selim" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "semi" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "selim" for "semi" ever safe?
Frequency check: "selim" vs "semi" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "selim" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "semi" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #17,129 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "selim" and "semi" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "selim vs slip". 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 #17,129 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.