tamborvstampoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#14,471
“tambor” frequency rank
#45,618
“tampo” frequency rank
60089
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tambor tampo
Definition instrumento musical do tipo membranofone, consistindo de uma membrana esticada sobre um tubo ou caixa de ressonância que pode ser de vários formatos o mesmo que tampa; objeto que serve para tampar, vedar, tapar, etc

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tambor and tampo apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
tambor
5 ch
tampo

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tambor (/tɐ̃.ˈboɾ/) and tampo (/ˈtɐ̃.pu/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60089, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tambor is recorded at frequency rank #14,471, classified as anoun, pronounced /tɐ̃.ˈboɾ/. tampo is at rank #45,618, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈtɐ̃.pu/.

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 60089, this pair ranks #7,848 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of tambor vs tampo

Shared letters: amot. Private to "tambor": br. Private to "tampo": p.

"tambor" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "tampo" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • tamboratmbor · tabmor · tambbor · tamborr · tambro · tammbor · tamobr · tmabor
  • tampoatmpo · tammpo · tamop · tamppo · tapmo · tmapo · ttampo

Frequency comparison

tambor#14,471
tampo#45,618

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tambor" and "tampo" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/tɐ̃.ˈboɾ/ versus /ˈtɐ̃.pu/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tambor" or "tampo"?
"tambor" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,471 in our Portuguese list, against #45,618 for "tampo". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tambor vs tampo

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 “tambor” 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