Which to use
“mãozinha” and “marinha” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,522
- “mãozinha” frequency rank
- #3,156
- “marinha” frequency rank
- 24678
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mãozinha | marinha |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | diminutivo de mão | costa, ribeira, praia, território próximo ao mar e por ele influenciado, litoral |
Where the eye mixes mãozinha and marinha
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. mãozinha runs 8 letters (CVVCVCCV) against marinha's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between mãozinha and marinha
A purely visual mix-up. mãozinha (/ˌmɐ̃w̃ˈzĩ.ɲɐ/ [ˌmɐ̃ʊ̯̃ˈzĩ.j̃ɐ]) and marinha (/mɐ.ˈɾi.ɲɐ/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 24678, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mãozinha is recorded at frequency rank #21,522, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˌmɐ̃w̃ˈzĩ.ɲɐ/ [ˌmɐ̃ʊ̯̃ˈzĩ.j̃ɐ]. marinha is at rank #3,156, tagged as anoun, pronounced /mɐ.ˈɾi.ɲɐ/.
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 24678, this pair ranks #44,872 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of mãozinha vs marinha
Shared letters: ahimn. Private to "mãozinha": ozã. Private to "marinha": r.
"mãozinha" · 8 letters · shape CVVCVCCV · "marinha" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- marinha ← amrinha · mairnha · marihna · marinah · marinhha · marinnha · marniha · marrinha
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mãozinha" and "marinha" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "mãozinha" vs "marinha" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "mãozinha" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "marinha" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #44,872 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mãozinha" and "marinha" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "marinha vs matilha". 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 #44,872 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.