matarvsminarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“matar” and “minar” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#1,053
“matar” frequency rank
#26,813
“minar” frequency rank
27866
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature matar minar
Definition causar morte, tirar a vida escavar para extrair da terra metais, líquidos, etc

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set matar and minar apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
matar
5 ch
minar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

matar and minar are indexed as a confusable Portuguese pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27866, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

matar is recorded at frequency rank #1,053, classified as averb, pronounced /mɐ.ˈtaɾ/. minar is at rank #26,813, tagged as averb.

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 27866, this pair ranks #41,047 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of matar vs minar

Shared letters: amr. Private to "matar": t. Private to "minar": in.

"matar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "minar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mataramtar · maatr · matarr · matra · mattar · mmatar · mtaar
  • minarimnar · mianr · minarr · minnar · minra · mminar · mniar

Frequency comparison

matar#1,053
minar#26,813

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "matar" and "minar" be used interchangeably?
No. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, but the dictionary glosses above give them different meanings, so swapping one for the other changes what the sentence says.
Which is more common, "matar" or "minar"?
"matar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,053 in our Portuguese list, against #26,813 for "minar". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering matar vs minar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “matar” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list