mimarvsmirarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#37,916
“mimar” frequency rank
#27,178
“mirar” frequency rank
65094
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mimar mirar
Definition dar mimo a; tratar com mimo olhar para algo

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mimar and mirar apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
mimar
5 ch
mirar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. mimar (/mi.ˈmaɾ/) and mirar (/mi.ˈɾaɾ/) 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 a single letter - m in “mimar” becomes r in “mirar”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65094, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mimar is recorded at frequency rank #37,916, classified as averb, pronounced /mi.ˈmaɾ/. mirar is at rank #27,178, tagged as averb, pronounced /mi.ˈɾaɾ/.

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 65094, this pair ranks #5,519 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of mimar vs mirar

Shared letters: aimr. Private to "mimar": -. Private to "mirar": -.

"mimar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "mirar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mimarimmar · miamr · mimarr · mimmar · mimra · mmiar · mmimar
  • mirarimrar · miarr · mirarr · mirrar · mmirar · mriar

Frequency comparison

mimar#37,916
mirar#27,178

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mimar" and "mirar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/mi.ˈmaɾ/ versus /mi.ˈɾaɾ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "mimar" or "mirar"?
"mirar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,178 in our Portuguese list, against #37,916 for "mimar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mimar vs mirar

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 “mimar” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list