Which to use
“volta” is a noun and “votar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #219
- “volta” frequency rank
- #2,345
- “votar” frequency rank
- 2564
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | volta | votar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | o ato de regressar ao local de partida | aprovar ou eleger por meio de voto |
Where the eye mixes volta and votar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses volta with votar
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: volta is /ˈvɔɫ.tɐ/ while votar is /vu.ˈtaɾ/. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2564, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
volta is recorded at frequency rank #219, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈvɔɫ.tɐ/. votar is at rank #2,345, tagged as averb, pronounced /vu.ˈtaɾ/.
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 2564, this pair ranks #72,784 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of volta vs votar
Shared letters: aotv. Private to "volta": l. Private to "votar": r.
"volta" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "votar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "volta" for "votar" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "volta" or "votar" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "volta" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "votar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #72,784 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "volta" and "votar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "velar vs votar". 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 #72,784 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.