Which to use
“shape” and “space” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #20,130
- “shape” frequency rank
- #13,845
- “space” frequency rank
- 33975
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | shape | space |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | forma | espaço |
Where the eye mixes shape and space
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses shape with space
A purely visual mix-up. shape (/ʃeɪp/) and space (/ˈspeɪs/) 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 33975, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
shape is recorded at frequency rank #20,130, classified as anoun, pronounced /ʃeɪp/. space is at rank #13,845, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈspeɪs/.
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 33975, this pair ranks #33,407 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of shape vs space
Shared letters: aeps. Private to "shape": h. Private to "space": c.
"shape" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "space" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "shape" and "space" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "shape" vs "space" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "shape" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "space" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #33,407 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "shape" and "space" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "shape vs soap". 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 #33,407 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.