Did you know that some grammatical mistakes can be absolutely understandable and justifiable? This happens because our language is complex, full of rules and also some exceptions that can confuse speakers, especially when transferring ideas to paper. We are used to judging our own mistakes (and the mistakes of others), but we are not used to analyzing the language and its intricacies.
The grammar of the Portuguese language is very rich, and studying it is not always an easy task. Our language is not among the easiest in the world, our syntax and semantics they are complex, and there is a universe of words to be unraveled. Among some of the most curious phenomena in Portuguese is paronymy, an aspect studied by Lexemática, a discipline that focuses on structuring the meaning relations of words. It may sound complicated, but paronyms are present in the speech of most speakers.
But what is paronymy? Paronymy is a type of semantic alteration that occurs when there are similar words in their phonological structure, that is, in their pronunciation and writing, but different in terms of meaning. Many linguistic mistakes are made due to lack of knowledge of this phenomenon, mistakes that can even affect textual comprehension. Look at some examples of paronyms:
Teacher (related to teacher)
Student (related to student)
Ratify (confirm, validate)
Rectify (correct, align)
Description (describing)
Discretion (what is discreet)
Traffic (transit)
Traffic (trade)
Imminent (pending, next to happen)
Eminent (illustrious)
Intimidate (fearless, fearless)
Intermerate (pure, immaculate)
Proscribe (condemn, abolish)
Prescribe (indicate, order)
Unnoticed (not noticed, not observed)
Unnoticed (unnoticed, unprepared)
Measure (compare, appreciate)
earn (take, steal)
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Pack (group of dogs)
Headdress (small blanket)
Deferred (defer, procrastinate)
Deferred (grant, assign)
Infringing (transgressing, disrespecting)
Inflict (penalize, impose)
Discriminate (absolve)
Discriminate (distinguish, differentiate)
Precursor (pioneer, progon)
Pathfinder (what runs)
Greeting (greeting)
Length (size, magnitude)
Fluvial (relating to river)
Pluvial (relative to rain)
Immerse (immerse)
Emerge (come to the surface)
report (report)
Dilate (widen, extend)
absorb (soak)
Absolve (exempt)
Manager (who directs, manages)
Diligent (applied, efficient)
In general, paronyms differ on the basis of prefixes to the same stem, as in outlaw and to prescribe, or to different radicals, as in pack and headdress. In addition to the twenty words listed above, there are many other paronyms, so it is correct to say that this is one of the phenomena that most generate doubts among users of the Portuguese language. So, be careful not to make mistakes, especially in the written mode. Good studies!
By Luana Castro
Graduated in Letters
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
PEREZ, Luana Castro Alves. "Paronymy"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/gramatica/paronimia.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.