Which to use
“nam” is a pronoun and “não” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #18,396
- “nam” frequency rank
- #11
- “não” frequency rank
- 18407
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nam | não |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | caso dativo do pronome pessoal my | usado para negar verbos e adjetivos |
Letter map: nam vs não
Shared letters muted; letters that set nam and não apart highlighted. Shared run: 1.
Grammar separator: nam vs não
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: nam is apronoun and nãoanadverb. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18407, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nam is recorded at frequency rank #18,396, classified as apron. não is at rank #11, tagged as anadv, pronounced /ˈnɐ̃w̃/.
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 18407, this pair ranks #52,588 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of nam vs não
Shared letters: n. Private to "nam": am. Private to "não": oã.
"nam" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "não" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "nam" and "não" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "nam" or "não"?
What to do next
Pair "nam" vs "não" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.
- Full dictionary entry for "nam" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "não" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #52,588 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nam" and "não" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nam vs nami". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #52,588 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.