mansãovsmissãoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#6,672
“mansão” frequency rank
#965
“missão” frequency rank
7637
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mansão missão
Definition morada função ou poder que se confere a alguém para agir

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
mansão
6 ch
missão

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. mansão (/mɐ̃.ˈsɐ̃w̃/) and missão (/mi.ˈsɐ̃w̃/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7637, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mansão is recorded at frequency rank #6,672, classified as anoun, pronounced /mɐ̃.ˈsɐ̃w̃/. missão is at rank #965, tagged as anoun, pronounced /mi.ˈsɐ̃w̃/.

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 7637, this pair ranks #66,462 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of mansão vs missão

Shared letters: mosã. Private to "mansão": an. Private to "missão": i.

"mansão" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVV  ·  "missão" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVV

Frequency comparison

mansão#6,672
missão#965

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mansão" and "missão" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/mɐ̃.ˈsɐ̃w̃/ versus /mi.ˈsɐ̃w̃/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "mansão" or "missão"?
"missão" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #965 in our Portuguese list, against #6,672 for "mansão". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mansão vs missão

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 “mansão” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list