Which to use
“dois” is a num and “dorso” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #109
- “dois” frequency rank
- #32,954
- “dorso” frequency rank
- 33063
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dois | dorso |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | número equivalente a um mais um; cardinalidade de um conjunto que contenha um elemento e um outro elemento distinto; representado pelo símbolo 2 (algarismos indo-arábicos) ou II (algarismos romanos); seu feminino é duas | costas |
Where the eye mixes dois and dorso
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. dois runs 4 letters (CVVC) against dorso's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: dois vs dorso
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dois is /ˈdojʃ/ while dorso is /ˈdoɾ.su/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33063, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dois is recorded at frequency rank #109, classified as anum, pronounced /ˈdojʃ/. dorso is at rank #32,954, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈdoɾ.su/.
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 33063, this pair ranks #34,561 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of dois vs dorso
Shared letters: dos. Private to "dois": i. Private to "dorso": r.
"dois" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "dorso" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "dois" for "dorso" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "dois" or "dorso" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "dois" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dorso" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #34,561 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "dois" and "dorso" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dodo vs dorso". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #34,561 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.