modelovsmodemWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#871
“modelo” frequency rank
#28,676
“modem” frequency rank
29547
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature modelo modem
Definition cópia de algo em tamanho bem menor que o original dispositivo de entrada e saída, modulador e desmodulador, utilizado para transmissão e processamento de dados entre computadores através de uma linha de comunicação

Where the eye mixes modelo and modem

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
modelo
5 ch
modem

Look-alike desk: modelo vs modem

A purely visual mix-up. modelo (/mu.ˈde.lu/) and modem (/mɔ.ˈdɛm/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29547, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

modelo is recorded at frequency rank #871, classified as anoun, pronounced /mu.ˈde.lu/. modem is at rank #28,676, tagged as anoun, pronounced /mɔ.ˈdɛm/.

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 29547, this pair ranks #39,046 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of modelo vs modem

Shared letters: demo. Private to "modelo": l. Private to "modem": -.

"modelo" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "modem" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • modelomdoelo · mmodelo · moddelo · modello · modeol · modleo · moedlo · omdelo
  • modemmdoem · mmodem · moddem · modemm · modme · moedm · omdem

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "modelo" and "modem" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (/mu.ˈde.lu/ versus /mɔ.ˈdɛm/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "modelo" or "modem"?
"modelo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #871 in our Portuguese list, against #28,676 for "modem". 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 "modelo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "modem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #39,046 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "modelo" and "modem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "moagem vs modem". 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 #39,046 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