Which to use
“nay” and “non” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #30,276
- “nay” frequency rank
- #6,793
- “non” frequency rank
- 37069
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nay | non |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | não | não |
Letter map: nay vs non
Shared letters muted; letters that set nay and non apart highlighted. Shared run: 1.
Pair insight - nay / non
nay and non are indexed as a confusable Portuguese pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37069, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nay is recorded at frequency rank #30,276, classified as anadv. non is at rank #6,793, tagged as anadv.
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 37069, this pair ranks #29,621 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of nay vs non
Shared letters: n. Private to "nay": ay. Private to "non": o.
"nay" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "non" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "nay" for "non" ever safe?
Frequency check: "nay" vs "non" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
You've compared "nay" and "non". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "nay" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "non" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #29,621 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nay" and "non" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nami vs nay". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #29,621 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.