Which to use
“mal” is an adverb and “mau” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #319
- “mal” frequency rank
- #1,936
- “mau” frequency rank
- 2255
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mal | mau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | de forma pouco satisfatória | que não é de boa qualidade, ruim |
Same sound, different letters: mal vs mau
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 2 letters.
Homophone desk: mal vs mau
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: mal and mau carry the same recorded pronunciation, /ˈmaw/. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is anadverb, the other anadjective, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by a single letter - l in “mal” becomes u in “mau”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2255, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mal is recorded at frequency rank #319, classified as anadv, pronounced /ˈmaw/. mau is at rank #1,936, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈmaw/.
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 2255, this pair ranks #73,186 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of mal vs mau
Shared letters: am. Private to "mal": l. Private to "mau": u.
"mal" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "mau" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "mal" and "mau" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "mal" or "mau"?
After this comparison
You've separated the homophone pair "mal" / "mau". Follow the links when you need the full entry or a neighbour that trips the same ear.
- Full dictionary entry for "mal" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mau" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #73,186 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mal" and "mau" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs mau". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #73,186 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.