paiolvspãoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#39,777
“paiol” frequency rank
#1,942
“pão” frequency rank
41719
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature paiol pão
Definition depósito de instrumentos bélicos alimento à base de farinha amassada, fermentada e assada em forno

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
paiol
3 ch
pão

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. paiol (/paj.ˈɔɫ/) and pão (/ˈpɐ̃w̃/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41719, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

paiol is recorded at frequency rank #39,777, classified as anoun, pronounced /paj.ˈɔɫ/. pão is at rank #1,942, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɐ̃w̃/.

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 41719, this pair ranks #24,164 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of paiol vs pão

Shared letters: op. Private to "paiol": ail. Private to "pão": ã.

"paiol" · 5 letters · shape CVVVC  ·  "pão" · 3 letters · shape CVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • paiolapiol · pailo · paioll · paoil · piaol · ppaiol

Frequency comparison

paiol#39,777
pão#1,942

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "paiol" and "pão" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/paj.ˈɔɫ/ versus /ˈpɐ̃w̃/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "paiol" or "pão"?
"pão" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,942 in our Portuguese list, against #39,777 for "paiol". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering paiol vs pão

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “paiol” 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