Which to use
“matei” is a verb and “mater” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,532
- “matei” frequency rank
- #31,868
- “mater” frequency rank
- 41400
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | matei | mater |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | primeira pessoa do singular do pretérito perfeito do modo indicativo do verbo matar | maternidade, estabelecimento público ou privado destinado a receber mulheres que estão a ponto de dar a luz |
Where the eye mixes matei and mater
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. matei (CVCVV) and mater (CVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses matei with mater
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: matei is /ma.ˈteɪ/ while mater is /ma.tɛʁ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - i in “matei” becomes r in “mater”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41400, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
matei is recorded at frequency rank #9,532, classified as averb, pronounced /ma.ˈteɪ/. mater is at rank #31,868, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ma.tɛʁ/.
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 41400, this pair ranks #24,523 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of matei vs mater
Shared letters: aemt. Private to "matei": i. Private to "mater": r.
"matei" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV · "mater" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "matei" for "mater" ever safe?
Which is more common, "matei" or "mater"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "matei" and "mater" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "matei" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mater" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #24,523 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "matei" and "mater" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mater vs matiz". 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 #24,523 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.