seinvssinConfusable pair

Quick tell: sein is a verb, sin is a pronoun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“sein” is a verb and “sin” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#43,647
“sein” frequency rank
#8,687
“sin” frequency rank
52334
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sein sin
Definition ser, estar. aquilo, aquele

Letter map: sein vs sin

Shared letters muted; letters that set sein and sin apart highlighted. Shared run: 3.

4 ch
sein
3 ch
sin

Role in the sentence - sein and sin

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: sein is averb and sinapronoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52334, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sein is recorded at frequency rank #43,647, classified as averb, pronounced /zaɪ̯n/. sin is at rank #8,687, tagged as apron.

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 52334, this pair ranks #12,837 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of sein vs sin

Shared letters: ins. Private to "sein": e. Private to "sin": -.

"sein" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "sin" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • seinesin · seinn · seni · sien · ssein

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "sein" for "sin" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "sein" is a verb and "sin" a pronoun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "sein" or "sin"?
"sin" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,687 in our Portuguese list, against #43,647 for "sein". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "sein" and "sin".

  • Full dictionary entry for "sein" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "sin" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #12,837 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "sein" and "sin" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sein vs slip". 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 #12,837 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