mostravsmostrarWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: mostra is a noun, mostrar is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“mostra” is a noun and “mostrar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#772
“mostra” frequency rank
#712
“mostrar” frequency rank
1484
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mostra mostrar
Definition exemplo, espécime fazer aparecer

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mostra and mostrar apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
mostra
7 ch
mostrar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mostra is /ˈmɔʃ.tɾɐ/ while mostrar is /muʃ.ˈtɾaɾ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “mostra” sits inside “mostrar”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1484, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mostra is recorded at frequency rank #772, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɔʃ.tɾɐ/. mostrar is at rank #712, tagged as averb, pronounced /muʃ.ˈtɾaɾ/.

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 1484, this pair ranks #74,075 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of mostra vs mostrar

Shared letters: amorst. Private to "mostra": -. Private to "mostrar": -.

"mostra" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV  ·  "mostrar" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mostrammostra · mosrta · mosstra · mostar · mosttra · motsra · msotra · omstra
  • mostrarmmostrar · mosrtar · mosstrar · mostarr · mostrarr · mostrra · mostrrar · mosttrar

Frequency comparison

mostra#772
mostrar#712

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mostra" and "mostrar" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mostra" is a noun and "mostrar" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mostra" or "mostrar"?
"mostrar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #712 in our Portuguese list, against #772 for "mostra". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mostra vs mostrar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “mostra”; for a verb, it's “mostrar”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mostra” 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