sobvssuWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: sob is a preposition, su is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“sob” is a preposition and “su” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#320
“sob” frequency rank
#6,713
“su” frequency rank
7033
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sob su
Definition abaixo, em baixo dele

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sob and su apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
sob
2 ch
su

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

sob and su 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 1 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 7033, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sob is recorded at frequency rank #320, classified as aprep, pronounced /ˈsob/. su is at rank #6,713, tagged as anadj.

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 7033, this pair ranks #67,216 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

sob#320
su#6,713

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sob" and "su" be used interchangeably?
No, "sob" and "su" 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 sob vs su

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a preposition, it's “sob”; for an adjective, it's “su”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sob” 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