pessoa
/pɨ.ˈso.ɐ/
The verdict
“pessoa” is in the everyday core of Portuguese, ranked #235 in Portuguese word frequency and used as a noun.
- #235
- frequency rank, Portuguese
- 6
- letters
- 6
- tracked misspellings
- 8
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - indivíduo consciente de si e distinto dos demais
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 | pessoa |
| Language | Portuguese |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /pɨ.ˈso.ɐ/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #235 |
| Misspellings tracked | 6 |
| Confusable pairs | 8 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “pessoa” sits in Portuguese frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The Portuguese entry for pessoa is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /pɨ.ˈso.ɐ/. Corpus data places it at rank #235 in overall Portuguese word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for pessoa, with forms such as "epssoa", "pesoa", and "pesosa". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "pressa", "pessoal", "passa", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct Portuguese form is pessoa, spelled P-E-S-S-O-A.
Definition
- 1indivíduo consciente de si e distinto dos demais
- 2individualidade
- 3a função social desempenhado por um ser humano
- 4um dos constituintes da Santíssima Trindade; atributo divino do Deus cristão que, embora único em sua essência, assume três individualidades distintas: o Pai, o Filho e o Espírito Santo
- 5entidade que a lei reconhece como sendo capaz de processar outra ou ser processada; os dois tipos mais comuns são pessoa física e pessoa jurídica
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: epssoa,pesoa,pesosa,pessao,ppessoa,psesoa
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of pessoa - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "pessoa"?
What does "pessoa" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "pessoa"?
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Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “pessoa”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct Portuguese spelling is P-E-S-S-O-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /pɨ.ˈso.ɐ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “pressa” - see the side-by-side comparison. pessoa vs pressa
- 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.