sivssoisWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#482
“si” frequency rank
#20,136
“sois” frequency rank
20618
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature si sois
Definition refere-se à terceira pessoa, indica reflexividade e é usado após preposição (a, de, em, contra, sobre, por, etc., exceto com) segunda pessoa do plural do presente do indicativo do verbo ser

Where the spellings diverge

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

2 ch
si
4 ch
sois

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

si and sois form a confusable pair in the Portuguese index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20618, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

si is recorded at frequency rank #482, classified as apron, pronounced /ˈsi/. 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 20618, this pair ranks #49,845 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

si#482
sois#20,136

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "si" and "sois" be used interchangeably?
No, "si" and "sois" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering si vs sois

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a pronoun, it's “si”; for a verb, it's “sois”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “si” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list