Which to use
“ago” and “ali” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,434
- “ago” frequency rank
- #593
- “ali” frequency rank
- 10027
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ago | ali |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | há, atrás – adj | naquele lugar |
Where the eye mixes ago and ali
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Look-alike desk: ago vs ali
A purely visual mix-up. ago (/əˈɡəʊ/) and ali (/ɐ.ˈli/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10027, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ago is recorded at frequency rank #9,434, classified as anadv, pronounced /əˈɡəʊ/. ali is at rank #593, tagged as anadv, pronounced /ɐ.ˈli/.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 10027, this pair ranks #63,210 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ago vs ali
Shared letters: a. Private to "ago": go. Private to "ali": il.
"ago" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "ali" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "ago" and "ali" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "ago" or "ali"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ago" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ali" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #63,210 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ago" and "ali" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "acs vs ago". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #63,210 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.