nulavsnunWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: nula is a adjective, nun is an adverb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“nula” is an adjective and “nun” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#21,530
“nula” frequency rank
#39,280
“nun” frequency rank
60810
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nula nun
Definition feminino de nulo agora, neste momento:

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set nula and nun apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
nula
3 ch
nun

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nula is /ˈnu.lɐ/ while nun is /ˈnuːn/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60810, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nula is recorded at frequency rank #21,530, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈnu.lɐ/. nun is at rank #39,280, tagged as anadv, pronounced /ˈnuːn/.

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 60810, this pair ranks #7,472 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of nula vs nun

Shared letters: nu. Private to "nula": al. Private to "nun": -.

"nula" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "nun" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nulanlua · nnula · nual · nulla · unla

Frequency comparison

nula#21,530
nun#39,280

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "nula" and "nun" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "nula" is an adjective and "nun" an adverb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "nula" or "nun"?
"nula" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,530 in our Portuguese list, against #39,280 for "nun". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering nula vs nun

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “nula”; for an adverb, it's “nun”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “nula” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list