netvsnumWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#4,258
“net” frequency rank
#234
“num” frequency rank
4492
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature net num
Definition não, nem o mesmo que não

Letter map: net vs num

Shared letters muted; letters that set net and num apart highlighted. Shared run: 1.

3 ch
net
3 ch
num

Pair insight - net / num

net and num 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 4492, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

net is recorded at frequency rank #4,258, classified as anadv, pronounced /net/. num is at rank #234, 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 4492, this pair ranks #70,387 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of net vs num

Shared letters: n. Private to "net": et. Private to "num": mu.

"net" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "num" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "net" for "num" ever safe?
No. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, but the dictionary glosses above give them different meanings, so swapping one for the other changes what the sentence says.
Frequency check: "net" vs "num" - which ranks higher?
"num" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #234 in our Portuguese list, against #4,258 for "net". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Useful next steps

You've compared "net" and "num". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "net" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "num" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #70,387 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "net" and "num" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "net vs nim". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #70,387 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