Quick answer
Destratar is bad treatment; distratar is the formal undoing of an agreement.
A reliable test is to identify the job of the word before translating from English.
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What each word does
destratar
to mistreat or insult
Use destratar for treating someone rudely, harshly, or disrespectfully.
distratar
to rescind a contract
Use distratar for ending or undoing an agreement through a distrato.
How to choose
- destratar: Choose destratar if the sentence points to treating someone rudely, harshly, or disrespectfully.
- distratar: Choose distratar if the sentence points to ending or undoing an agreement through a distrato.
Examples
O gerente destratou a funcionária diante da equipe.
The manager treated the employee rudely in front of the team.
As partes concordaram em distratar o contrato.
The parties agreed to rescind the contract.
Common trap
The legal noun distrato signals the i spelling. Outside contract law, destratar is far more likely.
Practice it in context
Pick one sentence from your real life and write it twice: once with destratar, then once with distratar. If both versions feel possible, name the meaning shift.
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