águavsalgumWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: água is a noun, algum is a pronoun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“água” is a noun and “algum” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#254
“água” frequency rank
#371
“algum” frequency rank
625
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature água algum
Definition substância (H₂O) líquida e incolor, insípida e inodora, essencial para a vida da maior parte dos organismos vivos e excelente solvente para muitas outras substâncias; óxido de hidrogênio um certo

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set água and algum apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
água
5 ch
algum

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: água is anoun and algumapronoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 625, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

água is recorded at frequency rank #254, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈa.gwɐ/. algum is at rank #371, tagged as apron.

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 625, this pair ranks #75,045 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of água vs algum

Shared letters: agu. Private to "água": á. Private to "algum": lm.

"água" · 4 letters · shape VCVV  ·  "algum" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • algumaglum · alggum · algmu · algumm · allgum · alugm · lagum

Frequency comparison

água#254
algum#371

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "água" and "algum" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "água" is a noun and "algum" a pronoun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "água" or "algum"?
"água" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #254 in our Portuguese list, against #371 for "algum". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering água vs algum

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “água”; for a pronoun, it's “algum”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “água” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

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