The Portuguese Language

Is Portuguese basically Spanish?

No, it’s a different language with different words, sounds, and pronunciations. Its roots are closer to Latin. You might call it a superset of Spanish - a Portuguese speaker can often understand Spanish, but not vice-versa. If you know a little Spanish, some words might look familiar, but that’s about the extent of it.

Do I Need to Know Portuguese to Survive?

No! In cities, you will be just fine speaking English. Hotel staff are bilingual at a minimum, and most restaurants will have menu items listed in English and a bilingual waitstaff. In addition, much of the younger generation speaks English fluently.

If you travel off the beaten path, you might have a harder time finding someone who speaks English. We ate lunch at a restaurant called Saloio in a small town named Malveira and it was a bit of a challenge…

Using the Google Lens App can be handy if you encounter Portuguese text you can’t read (maybe you’re not sure how to interpret a parking sign and worried your rental car will be towed). You point your phone camera at some text and it will translate it for you, live. If you have an Android phone, this feature is already built into your Camera app (Modes -> Lens -> Translate).

…But Say a Few Words Anyway!

Portuguese in Portugal is a little different from Portuguese in Brazil. Locals tell Daniela it sounds like she’s singing when she talks. For people like Daniela who are from Rio de Janeiro, there is more of an “shh” sound for a lot of “s” letters. So you might hear a Portuguese person say “ko-mo es-tah?” instead of “ko-mo esh-tah?. Just like in America, there are regional dialects all over Portugal. To make things more confusing, in Northeast Portugal they speak an entirely different language called Mirandese!

Even if you don’t get the pronunciation exactly right, locals will appreciate that you are trying to say a few words in their language.

The format below is: English - Portuguese - Phonetic Pronunciation.

Greetings

Hello - Olá - oh-lah

Good morning - Bom dia - bom jee-ah

Good evening - Boa tarde - bo-ah tar-deh

Good night - Boa noite - bo-ah noytch

Goodbye - Adeus/Tchau - a-de-ush / chow

How are you? - Como está? - ko-mo esh-tah?

I’m well, and you? - Eu estou bem, e tu? - ay-o esh-tou behm, eh too?

Good, thanks - Bem, obrigado / (m.) obrigada (f.) - behm ob-ree-gah-doh/dah

Note: if you’re male, you always say “obrigado”, and if you’re female, you always say “obrigada”, regardless of the gender of the person you’re addressing.

Essentials

Please - Por favor - por fa-vor

Thank you - Obrigado (m.) / obrigada (f.) - ob-ree-gah-doh/dah

You’re welcome - De nada - day na-dah

Yes - Sim - seengh

No - Não - naowm

Excuse me - Com licença - kom lee-sen-sah

I’m sorry - Desculpa / lamento - desh-kool-pah

I don’t understand - Não compreendo - naoum kom-preh-en-doh

Do you speak English? - Fala inglês? - fah-la in-glaish

Questions

How much is…? - Quanto custa…? - kwan-toh kos-tah

Where is…? - Onde é…? - ond-jee eh

When? - Quando? - kwan-doh

May I please have…? - Pode dar me…, por favor? - pohd-jee dar meh por fa-vor

Eating Out

Beer - Cerveja - ser-vey-jah

Wine - Vinho - veen-yo

Water - Agua - ah-gwa

I don’t eat… - Não como… - naoum ko-moh

I’m a vegetarian - Sou vegetariano (m.)/ vegetariana (f.) - sow ve-ge-ta-re-en-no/noh

The bill, please - A conta, por favor - a kon-tah por fa-vor

Getting Around

Left - Esquerda - es-kayr-jah

Right - Direita - jee-rey-cha

Straight ahead - Sempre em frente - se-pre em fren-chee

Turn left - Vira a esquerda - vi-rai a es-kayr-jah

Turn right - Vire à direita - vi-rai a jee-rey-cha

Bus stop - Paragem de autocarro - pa-ra-jem dje au-to-kar-ro

Train station - Estação de comboio - es-ta-saown je kom-boy-o

Airport - Aeroporto - ah-eh-roh-por-toh

Entrance - Entrada - en-tra-jah

Exit - Saida - sigh-da

Numbers

1 - Um - um

2 - Dois - doys

3 - Três - traysh

4 - Quatro - kwa-tro

5 - Cinco - sin-ko

6 - Seis - seys

7 - Sete - seh-chee

8 - Oito - oy-to

9 - Nove - noh-ve

10 - Dez - dez

20 - Vinte - vin-chee

30 - Trinta - treen-tah

40 - Quarenta - kwa-ren-ta

50 - Cinquenta - sin-kwen-ta

60 - Sessenta - seh-ssen-ta

70 - Setenta - seh-ten-ta

80 - Oitenta - oy-ten-ta

90 - Noventa - noh-ven-ta

100 - Cem - sem

Days

Monday - Segunda Feira - se-gun-da fey-ra

Tuesday - Terça Feira - ter-sa fey-ra

Wednesday - Quarta Feira - kwar-ta fey-ra

Thursday - Quinta Feira - kwin-ta fey-ra

Friday - Sexta Feira - ses-ta fey-ra

Saturday - Sábado - sah-bah-doh

Sunday - Domingo - doh-min-goh

Emergencies

Help! - Socorro! - so-kor-ho

I need a doctor - Eu preciso de um médico - ay-o pre-si-zo de um meh-de-ko

I don’t feel well - Nâo me sinto bem - naoum me sin-to behm

Call the police! - Chama a policia - xa-ma a po-lee-see-a

Fire! - Fogo! - fo-go