Which to use
“moção” is a noun and “moço” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #13,980
- “moção” frequency rank
- #12,496
- “moço” frequency rank
- 26476
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | moção | moço |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ato ou efeito de mover | verde, não maduro |
Where the eye mixes moção and moço
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between moção and moço
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: moção is /mu.ˈsɐ̃w̃/ while moço is /ˈmo.sʊ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26476, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
moção is recorded at frequency rank #13,980, classified as anoun, pronounced /mu.ˈsɐ̃w̃/. moço is at rank #12,496, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈmo.sʊ/.
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 26476, this pair ranks #42,680 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of moção vs moço
Shared letters: moç. Private to "moção": ã. Private to "moço": -.
"moção" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV · "moço" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "moção" and "moço" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "moção" or "moço"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "moção" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "moço" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #42,680 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "moção" and "moço" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "moço vs muso". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #42,680 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.