valavsvaliaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#16,196
“vala” frequency rank
#10,289
“valia” frequency rank
26485
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vala valia
Definition escavação em um terreno, de forma alongada e mais ou menos profunda, feita para variados fins, mais frequentemente para condução de águas, drenagem, ou instalação de encanamentos, esgotos etc valor

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
vala
5 ch
valia

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

vala and valia are indexed as a confusable Portuguese pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26485, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vala is recorded at frequency rank #16,196, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈva.lɐ/. valia is at rank #10,289, tagged as anoun.

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 26485, this pair ranks #42,672 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vala vs valia

Shared letters: alv. Private to "vala": -. Private to "valia": i.

"vala" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "valia" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • valaavla · vaal · valla · vlaa · vvala
  • valiaavlia · vaila · valai · vallia · vlaia · vvalia

Frequency comparison

vala#16,196
valia#10,289

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vala" and "valia" be used interchangeably?
No. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length, but the dictionary glosses above give them different meanings, so swapping one for the other changes what the sentence says.
Which is more common, "vala" or "valia"?
"valia" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,289 in our Portuguese list, against #16,196 for "vala". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering vala vs valia

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 “vala” 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