Which to use
“bak” is a noun and “but” is a conjunction - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,589
- “bak” frequency rank
- #7,254
- “but” frequency rank
- 45843
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bak | but |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | retaguarda, parte traseira | mas, porém, todavia |
Letter map: bak vs but
Shared letters muted; letters that set bak and but apart highlighted. Shared run: 1.
Grammar separator: bak vs but
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: bak is anoun and butaconjunction. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45843, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bak is recorded at frequency rank #38,589, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈbaːk/. but is at rank #7,254, tagged as aconj.
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 45843, this pair ranks #19,540 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of bak vs but
Shared letters: b. Private to "bak": ak. Private to "but": tu.
"bak" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "but" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bak" and "but" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "bak" or "but" show up more?
What to do next
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "bak" and "but".
- Full dictionary entry for "bak" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "but" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #19,540 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bak" and "but" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bak vs bué". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #19,540 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.