maçovsmagroWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: maço is a noun, magro is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“maço” is a noun and “magro” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#25,742
“maço” frequency rank
#10,924
“magro” frequency rank
36666
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature maço magro
Definition instrumento de madeira encabado para uso de carpinteiros, escultores, etc. não gordo, não cheio de carnes

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set maço and magro apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
maço
5 ch
magro

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: maço is anoun and magroanadjective. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36666, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

maço is recorded at frequency rank #25,742, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈma.su/. magro is at rank #10,924, tagged as anadj.

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 36666, this pair ranks #30,088 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of maço vs magro

Shared letters: amo. Private to "maço": ç. Private to "magro": gr.

"maço" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "magro" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • magroamgro · maggro · magor · magrro · margo · mgaro · mmagro

Frequency comparison

maço#25,742
magro#10,924

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "maço" and "magro" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "maço" is a noun and "magro" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "maço" or "magro"?
"magro" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,924 in our Portuguese list, against #25,742 for "maço". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering maço vs magro

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “maço”; for an adjective, it's “magro”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “maço” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list