Which to use
“are” and “ato” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,038
- “are” frequency rank
- #1,326
- “ato” frequency rank
- 5364
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | are | ato |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | unidade de medida de área equivalente a 100 metros quadrados | processo de fazer algo; manifestação real e tangível |
Where the eye mixes are and ato
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between are and ato
A purely visual mix-up. are (/ˈa.ɾe/) and ato (/ˈato/ ou /ˈatu/_(plural:) /ˈatos/, /ˈatus/ ou /ˈatuʃ/) 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 5364, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
are is recorded at frequency rank #4,038, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈa.ɾe/. ato is at rank #1,326, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈato/ ou /ˈatu/_(plural:) /ˈatos/, /ˈatus/ ou /ˈatuʃ/.
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 5364, this pair ranks #69,269 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of are vs ato
Shared letters: a. Private to "are": er. Private to "ato": ot.
"are" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "ato" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "are" for "ato" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "are" or "ato" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "are" and "ato" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "are" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ato" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #69,269 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "are" and "ato" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "acs vs are". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #69,269 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.