medovsmétodoConfusable pair

Quick tell: medo is a adjective, método is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“medo” is an adjective and “método” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#379
“medo” frequency rank
#2,334
“método” frequency rank
2713
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature medo método
Definition que pertence ou se refere à Média modo ordenado de fazer as coisas, ordem:

Where the eye mixes medo and método

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. medo runs 4 letters (CVCV) against método's 6 (CVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

4 ch
medo
6 ch
método

Why the eye confuses medo with método

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: medo is AFI: /'me.du/ while método is /ˈmɛ.tu.du/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2713, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

medo is recorded at frequency rank #379, classified as anadj, pronounced AFI: /'me.du/. método is at rank #2,334, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɛ.tu.du/.

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 2713, this pair ranks #72,575 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of medo vs método

Shared letters: dmo. Private to "medo": e. Private to "método": té.

"medo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "método" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • medo ← emdo · mdeo · meddo · meod · mmedo

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "medo" and "método" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "medo" is an adjective and "método" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "medo" vs "método" - which ranks higher?
"medo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #379 in our Portuguese list, against #2,334 for "método". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "medo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "método" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #72,575 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "medo" and "método" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "melado vs método". 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 #72,575 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