Which to use
“teem” is a verb and “três” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,238
- “teem” frequency rank
- #167
- “três” frequency rank
- 42405
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | teem | três |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | fervilhar | número equivalente a dois mais um; cardinalidade de um conjunto que contenha dois elementos e outro elemento distinto; representado pelo símbolo 3 (algarismos arábicos) ou III (algarismos romanos) |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set teem and três apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: teem is /tiːm/ while três is /ˈtɾeʃ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42405, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
teem is recorded at frequency rank #42,238, classified as averb, pronounced /tiːm/. três is at rank #167, tagged as anum, pronounced /ˈtɾeʃ/.
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 42405, this pair ranks #23,374 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of teem vs três
Shared letters: t. Private to "teem": em. Private to "três": rsê.
"teem" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "três" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- teem ← etem · teemm · tteem
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "teem" and "três" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "teem" or "três"?
Remembering teem vs três
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “teem”; for a num, it's “três”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “teem” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable