iamvsImamWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: iam is a verb, Imam is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“iam” is a verb and “Imam” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#4,823
“iam” frequency rank
#42,047
“Imam” frequency rank
46870
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature iam Imam
Definition terceira pessoa do plural do pretérito imperfeito do indicativo do verbo ir imã

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set iam and Imam apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
iam
4 ch
Imam

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: iam is /ˈi.am/, /ˈi.ɑm/ while Imam is /iˈmaːm/. 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 46870, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

iam is recorded at frequency rank #4,823, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈi.am/, /ˈi.ɑm/. Imam is at rank #42,047, tagged as anoun, pronounced /iˈmaːm/.

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 46870, this pair ranks #18,432 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of iam vs Imam

Shared letters: aim. Private to "iam": -. Private to "Imam": -.

"iam" · 3 letters · shape VVC  ·  "Imam" · 4 letters · shape VCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Imamiamm · imamm · imma · immam · miam

Frequency comparison

iam#4,823
Imam#42,047

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "iam" and "Imam" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "iam" is a verb and "Imam" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "iam" or "Imam"?
"iam" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,823 in our Portuguese list, against #42,047 for "Imam". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering iam vs Imam

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “iam”; for a noun, it's “Imam”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “iam” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list