vácuo vs vago, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“vácuo” and “vago” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#9,280
“vácuo” frequency rank: #13,858
“vago” frequency rank: 23138
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	vácuo	vago
Definition	vazio	sem um sentido bem definido

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vácuo and vago apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch

vácuo

4 ch

vago

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. vácuo (/ˈva.kwu/) and vago (/ˈva.ɡu/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23138, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vácuo is recorded at frequency rank #9,280, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈva.kwu/. vago is at rank #13,858, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈva.ɡu/.

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 23138, this pair ranks #46,742 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vácuo vs vago

Shared letters: ov. Private to "vácuo": cuá. Private to "vago": ag.

"vácuo" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV · "vago" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

vago ← avgo · vaggo · vaog · vgao · vvago

Frequency comparison

vácuo#9,280

vago#13,858

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vácuo" and "vago" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (/ˈva.kwu/ versus /ˈva.ɡu/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "vácuo" or "vago"?

"vácuo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,280 in our Portuguese list, against #13,858 for "vago". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering vácuo vs vago

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “vácuo” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable