Which to use
“madrinha” and “mãozinha” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,715
- “madrinha” frequency rank
- #21,522
- “mãozinha” frequency rank
- 34237
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | madrinha | mãozinha |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mulher que apresenta alguém (geralmente criança) para ser batizado ou crismado com o compromisso implícito de, na ausência dos pais, provê-lo de tudo quanto lhe seja necessário; dinda, dindinha | diminutivo de mão |
Where the eye mixes madrinha and mãozinha
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. madrinha (CVCCVCCV) and mãozinha (CVVCVCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: madrinha vs mãozinha
A purely visual mix-up. madrinha (/mɐ.ˈdɾi.ɲɐ/) and mãozinha (/ˌmɐ̃w̃ˈzĩ.ɲɐ/ [ˌmɐ̃ʊ̯̃ˈzĩ.j̃ɐ]) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34237, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
madrinha is recorded at frequency rank #12,715, classified as anoun, pronounced /mɐ.ˈdɾi.ɲɐ/. mãozinha is at rank #21,522, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˌmɐ̃w̃ˈzĩ.ɲɐ/ [ˌmɐ̃ʊ̯̃ˈzĩ.j̃ɐ].
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 34237, this pair ranks #33,087 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of madrinha vs mãozinha
Shared letters: ahimn. Private to "madrinha": dr. Private to "mãozinha": ozã.
"madrinha" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV · "mãozinha" · 8 letters · shape CVVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- madrinha ← amdrinha · maddrinha · madirnha · madrihna · madrinah · madrinhha · madrinnha · madrniha
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "madrinha" and "mãozinha" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "madrinha" or "mãozinha" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "madrinha" and "mãozinha" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "madrinha" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mãozinha" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #33,087 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "madrinha" and "mãozinha" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mãozinha vs marinha". 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 #33,087 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.