Which to use
“null” is a num and “nulo” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,573
- “null” frequency rank
- #18,400
- “nulo” frequency rank
- 60973
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | null | nulo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | o número zero | que não existe |
Where the eye mixes null and nulo
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between null and nulo
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: null is /nʊl/ ouvir^(fonte ?) while nulo is /ˈnu.lu/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - l in “null” becomes o in “nulo”, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60973, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
null is recorded at frequency rank #42,573, classified as anum, pronounced /nʊl/ ouvir^(fonte ?). nulo is at rank #18,400, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈnu.lu/.
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 60973, this pair ranks #7,380 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of null vs nulo
Shared letters: lnu. Private to "null": -. Private to "nulo": o.
"null" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "nulo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "null" and "nulo" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "null" or "nulo" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "null" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nulo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #7,380 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "null" and "nulo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "null vs nun". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #7,380 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.