Which to use
“pão” and “pé” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,942
- “pão” frequency rank
- #878
- “pé” frequency rank
- 2820
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pão | pé |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | alimento à base de farinha amassada, fermentada e assada em forno | extremidade dos membros inferiores do corpo humano, responsável pelo equilíbrio |
Where the eye mixes pão and pé
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. pão runs 3 letters (CVV) against pé's 2 (CV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: pão vs pé
A purely visual mix-up. pão (/ˈpɐ̃w̃/) and pé (/ˈpɛ/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2820, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pão is recorded at frequency rank #1,942, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɐ̃w̃/. pé is at rank #878, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɛ/.
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 2820, this pair ranks #72,435 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pão vs pé
Shared letters: p. Private to "pão": oã. Private to "pé": é.
"pão" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "pé" · 2 letters · shape CV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "pão" and "pé" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "pão" vs "pé" - which ranks higher?
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 "pão" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pé" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #72,435 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pão" and "pé" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pão vs pix". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #72,435 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.