nem
/ˈnɐ̃j̃/
The verdict
“nem” is in the everyday core of Portuguese, ranked #121 in Portuguese word frequency and used as an adverb.
- #121
- frequency rank, Portuguese
- 3
- letters
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - não
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | nem |
| Language | Portuguese |
| Part of speech | Adverb |
| IPA | /ˈnɐ̃j̃/ |
| Letters | 3 |
| Frequency rank | #121 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “nem” sits in Portuguese frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The Portuguese entry for nem is 3 letters long, classified as an adverb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈnɐ̃j̃/. Corpus data places it at rank #121 in overall Portuguese word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
nem doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular Portuguese conventions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "no", "nu", "ni", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct Portuguese form is nem, spelled N-E-M.
Definition
- 1não
- 2não até ao menos
Synonyms
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 Portuguese corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "nem"?
What does "nem" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "nem"?
How do you pronounce "nem"?
What language does "nem" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “nem”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct Portuguese spelling is N-E-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈnɐ̃j̃/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “no” - see the side-by-side comparison. nem vs no
- Browse more Portuguese words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Portuguese words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.