Which to use
“modo” is a noun and “mole” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #606
- “modo” frequency rank
- #7,187
- “mole” frequency rank
- 7793
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | modo | mole |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | maneira, jeito | não duro |
Where the eye mixes modo and mole
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses modo with mole
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: modo is /ˈmɔ.du/ while mole is /ˈmɔ.lɨ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7793, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
modo is recorded at frequency rank #606, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɔ.du/. mole is at rank #7,187, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈmɔ.lɨ/.
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 7793, this pair ranks #66,254 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of modo vs mole
Shared letters: mo. Private to "modo": d. Private to "mole": el.
"modo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "mole" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "modo" and "mole" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "modo" or "mole"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "modo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mole" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #66,254 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "modo" and "mole" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "míope vs mole". 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 #66,254 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.