Which to use
“baú” is a noun and “bem” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #13,895
- “baú” frequency rank
- #54
- “bem” frequency rank
- 13949
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | baú | bem |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | caixa retangular com tampa convexa e geralmente revestida de couro cru | de maneira hábil, segura |
Where the eye mixes baú and bem
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses baú with bem
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: baú is /ba.ˈu/ while bem is /ˈbẽĩ̯/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13949, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
baú is recorded at frequency rank #13,895, classified as anoun, pronounced /ba.ˈu/. bem is at rank #54, tagged as anadv, pronounced /ˈbẽĩ̯/.
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 13949, this pair ranks #58,262 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of baú vs bem
Shared letters: b. Private to "baú": aú. Private to "bem": em.
"baú" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "bem" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "baú" and "bem" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "baú" or "bem" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "baú" and "bem" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "baú" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #58,262 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "baú" and "bem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "baú vs bué". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #58,262 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.