das vs dun, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“das” is a contraction and “dun” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#35
“das” frequency rank: #45,320
“dun” frequency rank: 45355
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	das	dun
Definition	da preposição de com o artigo definido feminino plural as	penugem imatura em pássaros jovens

Where the spellings diverge

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

3 ch

das

3 ch

dun

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: das is /dɐs/ while dun is /duːn/, [d̥uːˀn]. 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 (contraction vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45355, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

das is recorded at frequency rank #35, classified as acontraction, pronounced /dɐs/. dun is at rank #45,320, tagged as anoun, pronounced /duːn/, [d̥uːˀn].

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 45355, this pair ranks #20,045 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of das vs dun

Shared letters: d. Private to "das": as. Private to "dun": nu.

"das" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "dun" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

das#35

dun#45,320

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "das" and "dun" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "das" is a contraction and "dun" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "das" or "dun"?

"das" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #35 in our Portuguese list, against #45,320 for "dun". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering das vs dun

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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