Which to use
“sic” is an adverb and “ste” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,836
- “sic” frequency rank
- #36,242
- “ste” frequency rank
- 44078
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sic | ste |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | assim | segunda pessoa do plural do futuro do indicativo do verbo byť |
Letter map: sic vs ste
Shared letters muted; letters that set sic and ste apart highlighted. Shared run: 1.
Grammar separator: sic vs ste
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: sic is anadverb and steaverb. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44078, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sic is recorded at frequency rank #7,836, classified as anadv, pronounced /siːk/. ste is at rank #36,242, tagged as averb.
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 44078, this pair ranks #21,463 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of sic vs ste
Shared letters: s. Private to "sic": ci. Private to "ste": et.
"sic" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "ste" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "sic" and "ste" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "sic" or "ste" show up more?
Useful next steps
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "sic" and "ste".
- Full dictionary entry for "sic" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ste" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #21,463 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sic" and "ste" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Sau vs ste". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #21,463 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.