Which to use
“mãos” is a noun and “moi” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #761
- “mãos” frequency rank
- #20,946
- “moi” frequency rank
- 21707
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mãos | moi |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural de mão | mim, eu, pronome pessoal tónico da primeira pessoa do singular: |
Where the eye mixes mãos and moi
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. mãos runs 4 letters (CVVC) against moi's 3 (CVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: mãos vs moi
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mãos is /ˈmɐ̃w̃ʃ/ while moi is /mwa/. 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 21707, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mãos is recorded at frequency rank #761, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɐ̃w̃ʃ/. moi is at rank #20,946, tagged as apron, pronounced /mwa/.
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 21707, this pair ranks #48,476 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of mãos vs moi
Shared letters: mo. Private to "mãos": sã. Private to "moi": i.
"mãos" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "moi" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "mãos" and "moi" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "mãos" vs "moi" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "mãos" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "moi" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #48,476 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mãos" and "moi" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs moi". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #48,476 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.