magnésiovsmagnéticoWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#20,936
“magnésio” frequency rank
#14,642
“magnético” frequency rank
35578
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature magnésio magnético
Definition elemento químico de símbolo Mg, possui o número atômico 12 e massa atômica relativa de 24.305; é um metal alcalino, sólido na temperatura ambiente; é muito abundante na natureza, principalmente na água do mar como íon dipositivo e na crosta terrestre, na forma de magnesite; o óxido de magnésio é muito utilizado na indústria de materiais refratários, borracha, fertilizantes, plásticos e na construção mecânica relativo ao magnetismo

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set magnésio and magnético apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
magnésio
9 ch
magnético

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: magnésio is /ma.ˈɡnɛ.zju/ while magnético is /ma.ˈɡnɛ.ti.ku/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35578, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

magnésio is recorded at frequency rank #20,936, classified as anoun, pronounced /ma.ˈɡnɛ.zju/. magnético is at rank #14,642, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ma.ˈɡnɛ.ti.ku/.

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 35578, this pair ranks #31,451 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of magnésio vs magnético

Shared letters: agimnoé. Private to "magnésio": s. Private to "magnético": ct.

"magnésio" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVV  ·  "magnético" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVCV

Frequency comparison

magnésio#20,936
magnético#14,642

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "magnésio" and "magnético" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "magnésio" is a noun and "magnético" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "magnésio" or "magnético"?
"magnético" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,642 in our Portuguese list, against #20,936 for "magnésio". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering magnésio vs magnético

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “magnésio”; for an adjective, it's “magnético”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “magnésio” 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