velavsvulvaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#5,478
“vela” frequency rank
#46,120
“vulva” frequency rank
51598
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vela vulva
Definition peça de brim ou lona que, presa às vergas de um mastro ou ao próprio mastro da embarcação, impele esta com a ajuda do vento parte externa do aparelho genital feminino que protege a vagina; é formada pelos grandes lábios, pequenos lábios, clitóris, orifício vaginal e uretral

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vela and vulva apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
vela
5 ch
vulva

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. vela (/ˈvɛ.lɐ/) and vulva (['vuɫ.vɐ]) 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 51598, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vela is recorded at frequency rank #5,478, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈvɛ.lɐ/. vulva is at rank #46,120, tagged as anoun, pronounced ['vuɫ.vɐ].

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 51598, this pair ranks #13,473 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of vela vs vulva

Shared letters: alv. Private to "vela": e. Private to "vulva": u.

"vela" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "vulva" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • velaevla · veal · vella · vlea · vvela
  • vulvauvlva · vluva · vulav · vullva · vulvva · vuvla · vvulva

Frequency comparison

vela#5,478
vulva#46,120

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vela" and "vulva" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ˈvɛ.lɐ/ versus ['vuɫ.vɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "vela" or "vulva"?
"vela" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,478 in our Portuguese list, against #46,120 for "vulva". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering vela vs vulva

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 “vela” 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