Which to use
“lau” is an adjective and “leg” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,230
- “lau” frequency rank
- #33,059
- “leg” frequency rank
- 54289
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lau | leg |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | morno, tépido: | perna |
Where the eye mixes lau and leg
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. lau (CVV) and leg (CVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: lau vs leg
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lau is /ˈlaʊ̯/ while leg is /lɛɡ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54289, 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/. leg is at rank #33,059, tagged as anoun, pronounced /lɛɡ/.
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 54289, this pair ranks #11,380 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of lau vs leg
Shared letters: l. Private to "lau": au. Private to "leg": eg.
"lau" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "leg" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lau" for "leg" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "lau" or "leg" show up more?
Useful next steps
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 "leg" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #11,380 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lau" and "leg" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "leg vs Lied". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #11,380 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.