Which to use
“terminal” is an adjective and “terminar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #5,259
- “terminal” frequency rank
- #1,832
- “terminar” frequency rank
- 7091
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | terminal | terminar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | o mesmo que final | acabar, encerrar, chegar ao fim |
Where the eye mixes terminal and terminar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses terminal with terminar
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: terminal is /tɨɾ.mi.ˈnaɫ/ while terminar is /tɨɾ.mi.ˈnaɾ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - l in “terminal” becomes r in “terminar”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7091, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
terminal is recorded at frequency rank #5,259, classified as anadj, pronounced /tɨɾ.mi.ˈnaɫ/. terminar is at rank #1,832, tagged as averb, pronounced /tɨɾ.mi.ˈnaɾ/.
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 7091, this pair ranks #67,148 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of terminal vs terminar
Shared letters: aeimnrt. Private to "terminal": l. Private to "terminar": -.
"terminal" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC · "terminar" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "terminal" and "terminar" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "terminal" or "terminar"?
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 "terminal" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "terminar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #67,148 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "terminal" and "terminar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "termal vs terminal". 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 #67,148 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.