Which to use
“hão” is a verb and “hero” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #24,033
- “hão” frequency rank
- #15,354
- “hero” frequency rank
- 39387
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hão | hero |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | terceira pessoa do plural do presente do indicativo do verbo haver | herói |
Where the eye mixes hão and hero
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between hão and hero
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hão is /ˈɐ̃w̃/ [ˈɐ̃ʊ̯̃] while hero is /hɪɹoʊ/, /hiːɹoʊ/. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39387, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hão is recorded at frequency rank #24,033, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈɐ̃w̃/ [ˈɐ̃ʊ̯̃]. hero is at rank #15,354, tagged as anoun, pronounced /hɪɹoʊ/, /hiːɹoʊ/.
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 39387, this pair ranks #26,887 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hão vs hero
Shared letters: ho. Private to "hão": ã. Private to "hero": er.
"hão" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "hero" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- hero ← ehro · heor · herro · hhero · hreo
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "hão" and "hero" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "hão" vs "hero" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "hão" and "hero" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "hão" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hero" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #26,887 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hão" and "hero" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hão vs hui". 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 #26,887 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.