MaltavsmatamConfusable pair

Quick tell: Malta is a noun, matam is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Malta” is a noun and “matam” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,211
“Malta” frequency rank
#7,546
“matam” frequency rank
13757
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Malta matam
Definition Malta terceira pessoa do plural do presente do indicativo do verbo matar

Letter map: Malta vs matam

Shared letters muted; letters that set Malta and matam apart highlighted. Shared run: 4.

5 ch
Malta
5 ch
matam

Grammar separator: Malta vs matam

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Malta is anoun and matamaverb. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13757, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Malta is recorded at frequency rank #6,211, classified as anoun. matam is at rank #7,546, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈma.tɐ̃ʊm/.

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 13757, this pair ranks #58,483 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Malta vs matam

Shared letters: amt. Private to "Malta": l. Private to "matam": -.

"Malta" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "matam" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Maltaamlta · malat · mallta · maltta · matla · mlata · mmalta
  • matamamtam · maatm · matamm · matma · mattam · mmatam · mtaam

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Malta" for "matam" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Malta" is a noun and "matam" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "Malta" vs "matam" - which ranks higher?
"Malta" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,211 in our Portuguese list, against #7,546 for "matam". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pair "Malta" vs "matam" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Malta" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "matam" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #58,483 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Malta" and "matam" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs matam". 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 #58,483 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list