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