mala vs maleta, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“mala” and “maleta” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#4,568
“mala” frequency rank: #29,036
“maleta” frequency rank: 33604
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	mala	maleta
Definition	bolsa (geralmente de couro ou pano e com cadeado) usada para carregar dinheiro, documentos e outros objetos	pequena mala

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mala and maleta apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch

mala

6 ch

maleta

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. mala (/ˈma.lɐ/) and maleta (/mɐ.ˈle.tɐ/) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33604, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mala is recorded at frequency rank #4,568, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈma.lɐ/. maleta is at rank #29,036, tagged as anoun, pronounced /mɐ.ˈle.tɐ/.

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 33604, this pair ranks #33,859 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of mala vs maleta

Shared letters: alm. Private to "mala": -. Private to "maleta": et.

"mala" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "maleta" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

mala ← maal · malla · mlaa · mmala
maleta ← amleta · maelta · maleat · maletta · malleta · maltea · mlaeta · mmaleta

Frequency comparison

mala#4,568

maleta#29,036

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mala" and "maleta" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (/ˈma.lɐ/ versus /mɐ.ˈle.tɐ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "mala" or "maleta"?

"mala" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,568 in our Portuguese list, against #29,036 for "maleta". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mala vs maleta

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mala” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable