Which to use
“laia” and “lata” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,883
- “laia” frequency rank
- #6,442
- “lata” frequency rank
- 44325
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | laia | lata |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | lã | folha de ferro laminada e estanhada |
Where the eye mixes laia and lata
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. laia (CVVV) and lata (CVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses laia with lata
A purely visual mix-up. laia (/ˈlaj.ɐ/) and lata (/ˈla.tɐ/) 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 a single letter - i in “laia” becomes t in “lata”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44325, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
laia is recorded at frequency rank #37,883, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈlaj.ɐ/. lata is at rank #6,442, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈla.tɐ/.
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 44325, this pair ranks #21,171 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of laia vs lata
Shared letters: al. Private to "laia": i. Private to "lata": t.
"laia" · 4 letters · shape CVVV · "lata" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "laia" and "lata" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "laia" vs "lata" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "laia" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lata" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #21,171 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "laia" and "lata" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "laia vs liana". 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 #21,171 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.