Which to use
“left” and “leme” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,488
- “left” frequency rank
- #12,478
- “leme” frequency rank
- 23966
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | left | leme |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | esquerda | superfície plana na parte traseira de um barco ou de um avião e que serve para os dirigir |
Where the eye mixes left and leme
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: left vs leme
A purely visual mix-up. left (/lɛft/) and leme (/ˈlɛ.mɨ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23966, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
left is recorded at frequency rank #11,488, classified as anoun, pronounced /lɛft/. leme is at rank #12,478, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈlɛ.mɨ/.
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 23966, this pair ranks #45,757 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of left vs leme
Shared letters: el. Private to "left": ft. Private to "leme": m.
"left" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "leme" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "left" for "leme" ever safe?
Frequency check: "left" vs "leme" - which ranks higher?
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 "left" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "leme" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #45,757 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "left" and "leme" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Leben vs leme". 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 #45,757 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.