Which to use
“maço” and “moção” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,742
- “maço” frequency rank
- #13,980
- “moção” frequency rank
- 39722
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | maço | moção |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | instrumento de madeira encabado para uso de carpinteiros, escultores, etc. | ato ou efeito de mover |
Where the eye mixes maço and moção
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. maço runs 4 letters (CVCV) against moção's 5 (CVCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses maço with moção
A purely visual mix-up. maço (/ˈma.su/) and moção (/mu.ˈsɐ̃w̃/) 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 39722, 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/. moção is at rank #13,980, tagged as anoun, pronounced /mu.ˈsɐ̃w̃/.
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 39722, this pair ranks #26,480 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of maço vs moção
Shared letters: moç. Private to "maço": a. Private to "moção": ã.
"maço" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "moção" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "maço" and "moção" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "maço" or "moção" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "maço" and "moção" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "maço" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "moção" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #26,480 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "maço" and "moção" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs maço". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #26,480 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.