Which to use
“quão” is an adverb and “quem” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,849
- “quão” frequency rank
- #68
- “quem” frequency rank
- 2917
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | quão | quem |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | exprime intensidade: quanto, como | pronome que se refere a uma ou mais pessoas |
Letter map: quão vs quem
Shared letters muted; letters that set quão and quem apart highlighted. Shared run: 2.
Grammar separator: quão vs quem
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: quão is anadverb and quemapronoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2917, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
quão is recorded at frequency rank #2,849, classified as anadv. quem is at rank #68, tagged as apron, pronounced /ˈkɐ̃j̃/.
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 2917, this pair ranks #72,309 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of quão vs quem
Shared letters: qu. Private to "quão": oã. Private to "quem": em.
"quão" · 4 letters · shape CVVV · "quem" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- quem ← qeum · qquem · quemm · qume · uqem
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "quão" for "quem" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "quão" or "quem" show up more?
What to do next
You've compared "quão" and "quem". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "quão" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "quem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #72,309 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "quão" and "quem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "quão vs quit". 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 #72,309 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.