Which to use
“lema” and “lua” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,042
- “lema” frequency rank
- #1,619
- “lua” frequency rank
- 8661
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lema | lua |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ideia expressa por uma frase que serve de guia ou de motivação para uma pessoa, grupo, seita, país ou nação | satélite natural da Terra, que se destaca no céu durante a noite |
Where the eye mixes lema and lua
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses lema with lua
A purely visual mix-up. lema (/ˈle.mɐ/) and lua (/'lua/) 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 8661, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lema is recorded at frequency rank #7,042, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈle.mɐ/. lua is at rank #1,619, tagged as anoun, pronounced /'lua/.
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 8661, this pair ranks #65,032 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lema vs lua
Shared letters: al. Private to "lema": em. Private to "lua": u.
"lema" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "lua" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- lema ← elma · leam · lemma · llema · lmea
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lema" and "lua" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "lema" or "lua" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lema" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lua" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #65,032 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lema" and "lua" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "laca vs lema". 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 #65,032 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.