metanovsmétodoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#25,398
“metano” frequency rank
#2,334
“método” frequency rank
27732
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature metano método
Definition substância cujas moléculas são formadas por um átomo de carbono ligado a quatro de hidrogênio; tem fórmula CH₄ modo ordenado de fazer as coisas, ordem:

Where the eye mixes metano and método

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. metano and método follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

6 ch
metano
6 ch
método

Visual trap between metano and método

A purely visual mix-up. metano (/me.ˈtã.nu/) and método (/ˈmɛ.tu.du/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27732, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

metano is recorded at frequency rank #25,398, classified as anoun, pronounced /me.ˈtã.nu/. 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 27732, this pair ranks #41,210 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of metano vs método

Shared letters: mot. Private to "metano": aen. Private to "método": dé.

"metano" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "método" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • metano ← emtano · meatno · metanno · metaon · metnao · mettano · mmetano · mteano

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "metano" and "método" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (/me.ˈtã.nu/ versus /ˈmɛ.tu.du/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "metano" or "método"?
"método" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,334 in our Portuguese list, against #25,398 for "metano". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "metano" 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 #41,210 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "metano" and "método" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "melado vs metano". 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 #41,210 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