Which to use
“mãe” and “mote” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #170
- “mãe” frequency rank
- #18,928
- “mote” frequency rank
- 19098
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mãe | mote |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mulher que tem ou teve filhos, naturais ou adotivos | partícula de pó |
Where the eye mixes mãe and mote
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between mãe and mote
A purely visual mix-up. mãe (/ˈmɐ̃j̃/) and mote (/moʊt/) 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 19098, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mãe is recorded at frequency rank #170, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɐ̃j̃/. mote is at rank #18,928, tagged as anoun, pronounced /moʊt/.
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 19098, this pair ranks #51,731 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of mãe vs mote
Shared letters: em. Private to "mãe": ã. Private to "mote": ot.
"mãe" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "mote" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- mote ← mmote · moet · motte · mtoe · omte
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mãe" and "mote" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "mãe" vs "mote" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "mãe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mote" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #51,731 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mãe" and "mote" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mote vs muto". 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 #51,731 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.