algo vs algum, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#222
“algo” frequency rank: #371
“algum” frequency rank: 593
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	algo	algum
Definition	um pouco, de certo modo	um certo

Letter map: algo vs algum

Shared letters muted; letters that set algo and algum apart highlighted. Shared run: 3. algo runs 4 letters (VCCV) against algum's 5 (VCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

4 ch

algo

5 ch

algum

Grammar separator: algo vs algum

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: algo is anadverb and algumapronoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 593, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

algo is recorded at frequency rank #222, classified as anadv, pronounced /ˈaw.gu/. 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 593, this pair ranks #75,080 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of algo vs algum

Shared letters: agl. Private to "algo": o. Private to "algum": mu.

"algo" · 4 letters · shape VCCV · "algum" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

algo ← aglo · alggo · allgo · alog
algum ← aglum · alggum · algmu · algumm · allgum · alugm · lagum

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "algo" and "algum" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "algo" is an adverb and "algum" a pronoun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

In ordinary Portuguese text, does "algo" or "algum" show up more?

"algo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #222 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.

Useful next steps

You've compared "algo" and "algum". Here's where to go from here.

Full dictionary entry for "algo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
Full dictionary entry for "algum" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
This pair ranks #75,080 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
"algo" and "algum" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "alce vs algo". Nearby pair
Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes

Confusion rank #75,080 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.