Which to use
“ago” is an adverb and “âmago” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,434
- “ago” frequency rank
- #36,708
- “âmago” frequency rank
- 46142
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ago | âmago |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | há, atrás – adj | cerne, centro |
Where the eye mixes ago and âmago
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. ago runs 3 letters (VCV) against âmago's 5 (VCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: ago vs âmago
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ago is /əˈɡəʊ/ while âmago is /ˈɐ.ma.gu/ ou /ˈɐ.mɐ.gu/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “ago” sits inside “âmago”, and the parts of speech differ too (adverb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46142, 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/. âmago is at rank #36,708, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɐ.ma.gu/ ou /ˈɐ.mɐ.gu/.
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 46142, this pair ranks #19,205 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ago vs âmago
Shared letters: ago. Private to "ago": -. Private to "âmago": mâ.
"ago" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "âmago" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ago" for "âmago" ever safe?
Frequency check: "ago" vs "âmago" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ago" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "âmago" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #19,205 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ago" and "âmago" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "alado vs âmago". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #19,205 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.