Which to use
“lau” and “lead” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,230
- “lau” frequency rank
- #17,835
- “lead” frequency rank
- 39065
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lau | lead |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | morno, tépido: | o mais importante |
Where the eye mixes lau and lead
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. lau runs 3 letters (CVV) against lead's 4 (CVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: lau vs lead
A purely visual mix-up. lau (/ˈlaʊ̯/) and lead (AFI: /lɛd/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39065, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lau is recorded at frequency rank #21,230, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈlaʊ̯/. lead is at rank #17,835, tagged as anadj, pronounced AFI: /lɛd/.
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 39065, this pair ranks #27,276 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lau vs lead
Shared letters: al. Private to "lau": u. Private to "lead": de.
"lau" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "lead" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- lead ← elad · laed · leadd · leda · llead
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lau" and "lead" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "lau" vs "lead" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "lau" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lead" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #27,276 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lau" and "lead" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "laca vs lau". 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 #27,276 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.