Which to use
“unir” is a verb and “útil” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,962
- “unir” frequency rank
- #2,549
- “útil” frequency rank
- 7511
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | unir | útil |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | juntar | que pode ter ou tem algum uso ou é necessário: |
Where the eye mixes unir and útil
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between unir and útil
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: unir is /ˈu.niɾ/ while útil is [ˈu.tʃiw]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7511, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
unir is recorded at frequency rank #4,962, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈu.niɾ/. útil is at rank #2,549, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈu.tʃiw].
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 7511, this pair ranks #66,606 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of unir vs útil
Shared letters: i. Private to "unir": nru. Private to "útil": ltú.
"unir" · 4 letters · shape VCVC · "útil" · 4 letters · shape VCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- unir ← nuir · uinr · unirr · unnir · unri
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "unir" for "útil" ever safe?
Frequency check: "unir" vs "útil" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "unir" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "útil" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #66,606 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "unir" and "útil" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "unir vs unser". 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 #66,606 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.