Which to use
“the” is an article and “três” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #93
- “the” frequency rank
- #167
- “três” frequency rank
- 260
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | the | três |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | o (artigo definido masculino singular) | 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 eye mixes the and três
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between the and três
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: the is /ðə/ (fraco, ou antes de consoante); /ðiː/ (enfático, ou antes de vogal) while três is /ˈtɾeʃ/. 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 (article vs num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 260, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
the is recorded at frequency rank #93, classified as anarticle, pronounced /ðə/ (fraco, ou antes de consoante); /ðiː/ (enfático, ou antes de vogal). 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 260, this pair ranks #75,376 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of the vs três
Shared letters: t. Private to "the": eh. Private to "três": rsê.
"the" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "três" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "the" for "três" ever safe?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "the" or "três" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "the" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "três" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #75,376 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "the" and "três" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "trema vs três". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #75,376 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.