Which to use
“maio” and “mijo” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #523
- “maio” frequency rank
- #31,051
- “mijo” frequency rank
- 31574
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | maio | mijo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | quinto mês do ano civil, formado por 31 dias | urina |
Where the eye mixes maio and mijo
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. maio (CVVV) and mijo (CVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses maio with mijo
A purely visual mix-up. maio (/ˈmaj.ju/) and mijo (/ˈmi.ʒu/) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31574, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
maio is recorded at frequency rank #523, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈmaj.ju/. mijo is at rank #31,051, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈmi.ʒu/.
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 31574, this pair ranks #36,462 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of maio vs mijo
Shared letters: imo. Private to "maio": a. Private to "mijo": j.
"maio" · 4 letters · shape CVVV · "mijo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "maio" and "mijo" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "maio" or "mijo"?
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 "maio" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mijo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #36,462 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "maio" and "mijo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mijo vs muso". 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 #36,462 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.