Which to use
“tha” is a verb and “tu” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,931
- “tha” frequency rank
- #243
- “tu” frequency rank
- 39174
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tha | tu |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | presente do verbo bi (ser, estar); sou/estou, é/está, somos/estamos, são/estão | expressa sonoridade produzido por telefone indicativo de que o aparelho telefonado foi posto no gancho ou que a linha caiu |
Where the eye mixes tha and tu
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses tha with tu
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: tha is /ha/ while tu is /ˈtu/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39174, 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/. tu is at rank #243, tagged as anintj, pronounced /ˈtu/.
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 39174, this pair ranks #27,137 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tha vs tu
Shared letters: t. Private to "tha": ah. Private to "tu": u.
"tha" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "tu" · 2 letters · shape CV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "tha" and "tu" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "tha" or "tu" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "tha" and "tu" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "tha" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #27,137 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tha" and "tu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tha vs tosa". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #27,137 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.