Which to use
“pero” is a conjunction and “prego” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #17,884
- “pero” frequency rank
- #17,890
- “prego” frequency rank
- 35774
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pero | prego |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mas, porém | objeto com corpo cilíndrico com uma das extremidades pontiaguda e outra achatada, usado para ser enfiado em paredes ou para unir duas peças (especialmente de madeira) |
Where the eye mixes pero and prego
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: pero vs prego
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pero is /ˈpe.ɾu/ while prego is /ˈpɾɛ.gu/. 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 (conjunction vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35774, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pero is recorded at frequency rank #17,884, classified as aconj, pronounced /ˈpe.ɾu/. prego is at rank #17,890, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɾɛ.gu/.
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 35774, this pair ranks #31,213 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pero vs prego
Shared letters: eopr. Private to "pero": -. Private to "prego": g.
"pero" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "prego" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pero" and "prego" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "pero" vs "prego" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "pero" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "prego" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #31,213 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pero" and "prego" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pero vs pomo". 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 #31,213 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.