Which to use
“mão” is a noun and “mo” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #451
- “mão” frequency rank
- #4,745
- “mo” frequency rank
- 5196
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mão | mo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | extremidade do membro anterior dos primatas, capaz de manipular objetos; parte do corpo semelhante ou análoga em outros animais | combinação de me (pronome pessoal oblíquo átono) e o (pronome pessoal oblíquo átono, pronome demonstrativo masculino ou pronome demonstrativo neutro) |
Where the eye mixes mão and mo
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses mão with mo
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mão is /mãw/ while mo is /mo/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs pronoun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5196, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mão is recorded at frequency rank #451, classified as anoun, pronounced /mãw/. mo is at rank #4,745, tagged as apron, pronounced /mo/.
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 5196, this pair ranks #69,478 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of mão vs mo
Shared letters: mo. Private to "mão": ã. Private to "mo": -.
"mão" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "mo" · 2 letters · shape CV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "mão" and "mo" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "mão" or "mo"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "mão" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #69,478 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mão" and "mo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs mo". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #69,478 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.