mamã vs máxima, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#29,037
“mamã” frequency rank: #3,092
“máxima” frequency rank: 32129
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	mamã	máxima
Definition	mãe	a expressão de uma verdade ou princípio geral, especialmente uma com tom moral ou aforístico

Where the eye mixes mamã and máxima

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch

mamã

6 ch

máxima

Visual trap between mamã and máxima

A purely visual mix-up. mamã (/mɜˈmɜ̃/) and máxima (/ˈma.si.mɐ/) 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 32129, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mamã is recorded at frequency rank #29,037, classified as anoun, pronounced /mɜˈmɜ̃/. máxima is at rank #3,092, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈma.si.mɐ/.

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 32129, this pair ranks #35,772 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of mamã vs máxima

Shared letters: am. Private to "mamã": ã. Private to "máxima": ixá.

"mamã" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "máxima" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "mamã" for "máxima" ever safe?

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

In ordinary Portuguese text, does "mamã" or "máxima" show up more?

"máxima" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,092 in our Portuguese list, against #29,037 for "mamã". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

Full dictionary entry for "mamã" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
Full dictionary entry for "máxima" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
This pair ranks #35,772 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
"mamã" and "máxima" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs mamã". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #35,772 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.