Which to use
“tha” is a verb and “that” is a conjunction - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,931
- “tha” frequency rank
- #3,648
- “that” frequency rank
- 42579
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tha | that |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | presente do verbo bi (ser, estar); sou/estou, é/está, somos/estamos, são/estão | que |
Where the eye mixes tha and that
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between tha and that
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: tha is /ha/ while that is /ðæt/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “tha” sits inside “that”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs conjunction), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42579, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tha is recorded at frequency rank #38,931, classified as averb, pronounced /ha/. that is at rank #3,648, tagged as aconj, pronounced /ðæt/.
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 42579, this pair ranks #23,180 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tha vs that
Shared letters: aht. Private to "tha": -. Private to "that": -.
"tha" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "that" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- that ← htat · taht · thatt · thhat · thta · tthat
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "tha" for "that" ever safe?
Which is more common, "tha" or "that"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "tha" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "that" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #23,180 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tha" and "that" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tha vs tosa". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #23,180 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.