Which to use
“mal” is an adverb and “meu” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #319
- “mal” frequency rank
- #46
- “meu” frequency rank
- 365
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mal | meu |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | de forma pouco satisfatória | de posse da primeira pessoa do singular (eu); pertencente a mim |
Where the eye mixes mal and meu
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses mal with meu
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mal is /ˈmaw/ while meu is /ˈmew/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adverb vs pronoun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 365, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mal is recorded at frequency rank #319, classified as anadv, pronounced /ˈmaw/. meu is at rank #46, tagged as apron, pronounced /ˈmew/.
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 365, this pair ranks #75,268 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of mal vs meu
Shared letters: m. Private to "mal": al. Private to "meu": eu.
"mal" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "meu" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "mal" for "meu" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "mal" or "meu" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "mal" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "meu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #75,268 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mal" and "meu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs mal". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #75,268 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.