Which to use
“mask” and “mat” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #36,537
- “mask” frequency rank
- #21,805
- “mat” frequency rank
- 58342
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mask | mat |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | máscara | casamento |
Where the eye mixes mask and mat
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. mask runs 4 letters (CVCC) against mat's 3 (CVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: mask vs mat
A purely visual mix-up. mask (/mæsk/) and mat (/mat/) 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 58342, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mask is recorded at frequency rank #36,537, classified as anoun, pronounced /mæsk/. mat is at rank #21,805, tagged as anoun, pronounced /mat/.
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 58342, this pair ranks #8,801 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of mask vs mat
Shared letters: am. Private to "mask": ks. Private to "mat": t.
"mask" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "mat" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- mask ← amsk · maks · maskk · massk · mmask · msak
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mask" and "mat" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "mask" or "mat" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "mask" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mat" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #8,801 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mask" and "mat" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs mask". 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 #8,801 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.