Which to use
“matam” is a verb and “metas” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,546
- “matam” frequency rank
- #6,791
- “metas” frequency rank
- 14337
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | matam | metas |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | terceira pessoa do plural do presente do indicativo do verbo matar | plural de meta |
Where the eye mixes matam and metas
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. matam and metas follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses matam with metas
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: matam is /ˈma.tɐ̃ʊm/ while metas is /ˈmɛ.tɐs/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14337, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
matam is recorded at frequency rank #7,546, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈma.tɐ̃ʊm/. metas is at rank #6,791, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɛ.tɐs/.
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 14337, this pair ranks #57,780 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of matam vs metas
Shared letters: amt. Private to "matam": -. Private to "metas": es.
"matam" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "metas" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "matam" and "metas" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "matam" or "metas"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "matam" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "metas" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #57,780 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "matam" and "metas" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "maa vs matam". 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 #57,780 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.