Which to use
“vacilar” and “validar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,377
- “vacilar” frequency rank
- #28,413
- “validar” frequency rank
- 68790
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vacilar | validar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | balançar, cambalear, oscilar, tremer | tornar(-se) válido, legítimo, legal. |
Where the eye mixes vacilar and validar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. vacilar and validar follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: vacilar vs validar
A purely visual mix-up. vacilar (/vɐ.si.ˈlaɾ/) and validar (/vɐ.li.ˈdaɾ/) 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 68790, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
vacilar is recorded at frequency rank #40,377, classified as averb, pronounced /vɐ.si.ˈlaɾ/. validar is at rank #28,413, tagged as averb, pronounced /vɐ.li.ˈdaɾ/.
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 68790, this pair ranks #4,161 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of vacilar vs validar
Shared letters: ailrv. Private to "vacilar": c. Private to "validar": d.
"vacilar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "validar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "vacilar" and "validar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "vacilar" or "validar"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "vacilar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "validar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #4,161 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vacilar" and "validar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vacilar vs vacinar". 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 #4,161 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.