Which to use
“ui” is an intj and “uni” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #19,875
- “ui” frequency rank
- #18,214
- “uni” frequency rank
- 38089
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ui | uni |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | exprime surpresa, admiração, repugnância | primeira pessoa do singular do pretérito perfeito do indicativo do verbo unir |
Where the eye mixes ui and uni
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ui with uni
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ui is /ˈuj/ while uni is /ʊ.ˈni/. 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 (intj vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38089, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ui is recorded at frequency rank #19,875, classified as anintj, pronounced /ˈuj/. uni is at rank #18,214, tagged as averb, pronounced /ʊ.ˈni/.
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 38089, this pair ranks #28,426 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ui vs uni
Shared letters: iu. Private to "ui": -. Private to "uni": n.
"ui" · 2 letters · shape VV · "uni" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "ui" and "uni" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Portuguese text, does "ui" or "uni" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ui" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "uni" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #28,426 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ui" and "uni" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ú vs ui". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #28,426 of 75,631 scored Portuguese pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.