uma

/ˈu.mɐ/

//ˈu.mɐ// article

The verdict

“uma” is in the everyday core of Portuguese, ranked #13 in Portuguese word frequency and used as an article.

#13
frequency rank, Portuguese
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - feminino de um

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

uma vs us
33% similar
uma vs ur
33% similar
uma vs ut
33% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for uma
PropertyValue
Headworduma
LanguagePortuguese
Part of speechArticle
IPA/ˈu.mɐ/
Letters3
Frequency rank#13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “uma” sits in Portuguese frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). uma lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The Portuguese entry for uma is 3 letters long, classified as an article, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈu.mɐ/. Corpus data places it at rank #13 in overall Portuguese word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "feminino de um".

Zero misspellings are on record for uma in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "us", "ur", "ut", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct Portuguese form is uma, spelled U-M-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    feminino de um

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 "uma"?
"uma" is spelled U-M-A. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈu.mɐ/.
What does "uma" mean?
As an article, "uma" means: feminino de um
What words are commonly confused with "uma"?
"uma" is commonly confused with "us", "ur", "ut". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "uma"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "uma" is /ˈu.mɐ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "uma" come from?
"uma" is a Portuguese word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “uma”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct Portuguese spelling is U-M-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈu.mɐ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “us” - see the side-by-side comparison. uma vs us
  • 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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list