Which to use
“tra” is a noun and “três” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,694
- “tra” frequency rank
- #167
- “três” frequency rank
- 27861
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tra | três |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | coisa | 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 tra and três
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: tra vs três
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: tra is /tʀa/ 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 (noun vs num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27861, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tra is recorded at frequency rank #27,694, classified as anoun, pronounced /tʀa/. 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 27861, this pair ranks #41,053 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tra vs três
Shared letters: rt. Private to "tra": a. Private to "três": sê.
"tra" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "três" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tra" and "três" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "tra" vs "três" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "tra" and "três" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "tra" 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 #41,053 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tra" and "três" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tra vs trema". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #41,053 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.