timidezvstímidoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: timidez is a noun, tímido is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“timidez” is a noun and “tímido” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#17,395
“timidez” frequency rank
#10,625
“tímido” frequency rank
28020
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature timidez tímido
Definition medo ou insegurança em comunicar-se com outras pessoas estado ou condição de quem tem timidez; que não tem autoconfiança

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set timidez and tímido apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
timidez
6 ch
tímido

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: timidez is /ʧi.mi.ˈdejʃ/, /ʧi.mi.ˈdeʃ/ while tímido is /ˈti.mi.du/. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28020, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

timidez is recorded at frequency rank #17,395, classified as anoun, pronounced /ʧi.mi.ˈdejʃ/, /ʧi.mi.ˈdeʃ/. tímido is at rank #10,625, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈti.mi.du/.

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 28020, this pair ranks #40,853 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of timidez vs tímido

Shared letters: dimt. Private to "timidez": ez. Private to "tímido": .

"timidez" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "tímido" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • timidezitmidez · tiimdez · timdiez · timiddez · timidezz · timidze · timiedz · timmidez

Frequency comparison

timidez#17,395
tímido#10,625

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "timidez" and "tímido" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "timidez" is a noun and "tímido" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "timidez" or "tímido"?
"tímido" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,625 in our Portuguese list, against #17,395 for "timidez". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering timidez vs tímido

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “timidez”; for an adjective, it's “tímido”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “timidez” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list