seinvssoisWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#43,647
“sein” frequency rank
#20,136
“sois” frequency rank
63783
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sein sois
Definition ser, estar. segunda pessoa do plural do presente do indicativo do verbo ser

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
sein
4 ch
sois

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. sein (/zaɪ̯n/) and sois (/ˈsojs/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63783, 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/. sois is at rank #20,136, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈsojs/.

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 63783, this pair ranks #6,043 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of sein vs sois

Shared letters: is. Private to "sein": en. Private to "sois": o.

"sein" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "sois" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • seinesin · seinn · seni · sien · ssein
  • soisosis · sios · soiss · sosi · ssois

Frequency comparison

sein#43,647
sois#20,136

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sein" and "sois" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/zaɪ̯n/ versus /ˈsojs/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "sein" or "sois"?
"sois" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,136 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.

Remembering sein vs sois

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 “sein” 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