fôssemosvsfossesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“fôssemos” and “fosses” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#27,493
“fôssemos” frequency rank
#29,740
“fosses” frequency rank
57233
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fôssemos fosses
Definition primeira pessoa do plural do pretérito imperfeito do subjuntivo do verbo ser. segunda pessoa do singular do pretérito imperfeito do subjuntivo do verbo ser

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fôssemos and fosses apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
fôssemos
6 ch
fosses

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fôssemos (/ˈfo.se.mus/) and fosses (/ˈfo.sis/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57233, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fôssemos is recorded at frequency rank #27,493, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈfo.se.mus/. fosses is at rank #29,740, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈfo.sis/.

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 57233, this pair ranks #9,452 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of fôssemos vs fosses

Shared letters: efos. Private to "fôssemos": . Private to "fosses": -.

"fôssemos" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "fosses" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fossesffosses · fosess · fossess · fossse · fsoses · ofsses

Frequency comparison

fôssemos#27,493
fosses#29,740

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fôssemos" and "fosses" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ˈfo.se.mus/ versus /ˈfo.sis/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fôssemos" or "fosses"?
"fôssemos" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,493 in our Portuguese list, against #29,740 for "fosses". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fôssemos vs fosses

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fôssemos” 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