covscumWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: co is a pronoun, cum is a preposition, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“co” is a pronoun and “cum” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,005
“co” frequency rank
#29,299
“cum” frequency rank
31304
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature co cum
Definition que usado para indicar algo com duas funções, ou então que tenha se modificado de uma coisa para outra:

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set co and cum apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

2 ch
co
3 ch
cum

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: co is apronoun and cumapreposition. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31304, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

co is recorded at frequency rank #2,005, classified as apron. cum is at rank #29,299, tagged as aprep, pronounced /kʌm/.

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 31304, this pair ranks #36,829 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of co vs cum

Shared letters: c. Private to "co": o. Private to "cum": mu.

"co" · 2 letters · shape CV  ·  "cum" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

co#2,005
cum#29,299

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "co" and "cum" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "co" is a pronoun and "cum" a preposition, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "co" or "cum"?
"co" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,005 in our Portuguese list, against #29,299 for "cum". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering co vs cum

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a pronoun, it's “co”; for a preposition, it's “cum”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “co” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list