ótimovsottoWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: ótimo is a adjective, otto is a num, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ótimo” is an adjective and “otto” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,417
“ótimo” frequency rank
#11,925
“otto” frequency rank
13342
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ótimo otto
Definition que é muito bom oito (8, VIII)

Where the eye mixes ótimo and otto

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

5 ch
ótimo
4 ch
otto

Why the eye confuses ótimo with otto

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ótimo is /ˈɒ.t͡ʃɪ.mʊ/ while otto is /ˈɔtto/. 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 num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13342, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ótimo is recorded at frequency rank #1,417, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈɒ.t͡ʃɪ.mʊ/. otto is at rank #11,925, tagged as anum, pronounced /ˈɔtto/.

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 13342, this pair ranks #59,039 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of ótimo vs otto

Shared letters: ot. Private to "ótimo": imó. Private to "otto": -.

"ótimo" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV  ·  "otto" · 4 letters · shape VCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • ottooto · otot · toto

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ótimo" and "otto" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ótimo" is an adjective and "otto" a num, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "ótimo" vs "otto" - which ranks higher?
"ótimo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,417 in our Portuguese list, against #11,925 for "otto". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "ótimo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "otto" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #59,039 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ótimo" and "otto" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "omo vs otto". 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 #59,039 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