matariavsmatavaConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#25,042
“mataria” frequency rank
#20,939
“matava” frequency rank
45981
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mataria matava
Definition primeira e terceira pessoa do singular do futuro do pretérito do verbo matar primeira e terceira pessoa do singular do pretérito imperfeito do modo indicativo do verbo matar

Where the eye mixes mataria and matava

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. mataria runs 7 letters (CVCVCVV) against matava's 6 (CVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
mataria
6 ch
matava

Visual trap between mataria and matava

A purely visual mix-up. mataria (/ma.ta.ˈɾi.ɐ/) and matava (/ma.ˈta.vɐ/) 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 45981, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mataria is recorded at frequency rank #25,042, classified as averb, pronounced /ma.ta.ˈɾi.ɐ/. matava is at rank #20,939, tagged as averb, pronounced /ma.ˈta.vɐ/.

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 45981, this pair ranks #19,398 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of mataria vs matava

Shared letters: amt. Private to "mataria": ir. Private to "matava": v.

"mataria" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVV  ·  "matava" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mataria ← amtaria · maatria · mataira · matarai · matarria · matraia · mattaria · mmataria
  • matava ← amtava · maatva · mataav · matavva · mattava · matvaa · mmatava · mtaava

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mataria" and "matava" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ma.ta.ˈɾi.ɐ/ versus /ma.ˈta.vɐ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "mataria" or "matava"?
"matava" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,939 in our Portuguese list, against #25,042 for "mataria". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "mataria" and "matava" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "mataria" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "matava" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #19,398 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "mataria" and "matava" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Maiara vs mataria". 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 #19,398 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list