Which to use
“bem” is an adverb and “by” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #54
- “bem” frequency rank
- #1,598
- “by” frequency rank
- 1652
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bem | by |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | de maneira hábil, segura | por; |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set bem and by apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
bem and by form a confusable pair in the Portuguese index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1652, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bem is recorded at frequency rank #54, classified as anadv, pronounced /ˈbẽĩ̯/. by is at rank #1,598, tagged as aprep.
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 1652, this pair ranks #73,876 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bem" and "by" be used interchangeably?
Remembering bem vs by
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adverb, it's “bem”; for a preposition, it's “by”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “bem” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable