Scan the QR code with your phone (or click here) and play the audio for each phrase.
The two most important pronunciations in English
Why? 2
Digraphs 4
Words ending in L/Z/R/U/I 5
Noun vs Verb 6
Closing 7
BBH Assignment 7
Why?
It is important to learn how to correctly spell and pronounce a language early in your language learning adventure because it avoids learning two versions of the same language. For example, if I learned the meaning of the word “filha” but never learned to pronounce it correctly, I would know it means daughter but would think it is pronounced as “fill-ha”. Then, when I finally use it with a native speaker or perhaps hear it pronounced, I will have to forget the pronunciation I originally linked to the word and replace it with the correct one. As you can see, it is definitely worth investing some time upfront to avoid this situation. I promise it won’t be too painful!
Portuguese Alphabet & Pronunciation
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Letter
Name
Pronunciation
Example
Approx. Sound
Notes
a
á
open - ah
closed - uh
nasal - uhn(g)
casa
banana
falam
father
but
sung
á is always open
â is always closed
ã or -m/n
b
bê
b
berço
basement
c
cê
c
s
vaca
centro
car
cent
-e/i/y
d
dê
d
dg*
data
verde
difícil
dance
judge
-i/e (if last letter since it turns into long i)
e
é
open - eh
closed - ay
nasal - ayn(g)
reduced - long e
camiseta
medo
centro
onze
set
neigh
-
fee
é is always open
ê is always closed
-m/n
When last letter
f
efe
f
fala
fact
g
gê
g
jheh
gato
agente
gecko
measure
-e/i/y
h
agá
[silent]
hotel
[silent]
i
i
long i
nasal -ihn(g)
cinco
sim
ski
-
-m/n
j
jota
-
já
pleasure
k
cá
k
kiwi
kitchen
Not in original alphabet
l
ele
l
w
leste
brasil
alface
loud
eww
When last letter or
end of syllable
m**
eme
m
m (don’t finish)
mesa
sim
mouse
-
When last letter
n**
ene
n
n (don’t finish)
nunca
hein
never
-
When last letter
o
ó
open - awe
closed - long o
nasal - ohn(g)
reduced - oo
bola
nome
bom
dedo
awful
gnome
-
dude
ó is always open
ô is always closed
õ or -m/n
When last letter
p
pê
p
pintar
point
q
keh
quê
quinze
key
See digraphs below
r
erre
r
breathy h*
h
caro
certo
falar
rio
carrego
better
park (Boston)
car (Boston)
heap
Vwl - r - Consonant
Last letter
First letter or rr
rr
s
esse
s
z
sh*
santo
tosse
casa
mês
simple
zebra
mesh
ss
Between vowels
Last letter (after vow.)
t
tê
t
ch*
tempo
ardente
tigre
steak
cheese
-i/e (if last letter since it turns into long i)
u
u
u
nasal - uhn(g)
caju
algum
juice
-
-m/n
v
vê
v
veja
very
w
dáblio
v
w
Wagner
Winderson
very
water
Not in original alphabet
x
xis
sh
s
x
z
xícara
roxo
excelente
texto
anexo
exemplo
shoe
essence
fix
zebra
First letter
-c
y
ípsilon
y
Gisely
year
Not in original alphabet
z
zê
z
s*
zebra
rapaz
zebra
fuss
Last letter
- Depends on regional accent.
- *When at the end of a word or syllable, indicates that the previous vowel is nasalized.
Digraphs
Pairs of letters which represent a single sound different from the sum of their components.
Digraphs
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Digraph
Pronunciation
Example
Approx. Sound
Notes
nh
ny
minha
Like the ñ in Spanish
lh
ly
filho
medallion
ch
sh
chá
shave
rr
h
carro
tahoe
Occurs between vowels
ss
s
tosse
class
Occurs between vowels
qu
k
kw
quebra
quase
key
Kwanzaa
-e/i: either pronunciation*
-a/o: second pronunciation
*The trema (ü) used to be used to differentiate.
gu
g
gw
sangue
guaraná
singer
gwa
Stress Pattern
Default stress is on the next-to-last syllable.
Examples
como estuda comida eles vizinha revistas velho
Words ending in L/Z/R/U/I
Stress is on the last syllable.
Examples
jornal papel rapaz falar urubu comi
Accent Marks
Automatically pulls stress to the syllable containing the accent mark.
Examples
Automático Pronúncia Àquilo ônibus metrô
Accent Marks
Accent Marks
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2
3
Mark(s)
Name
Effect
Example
Shortcut (OSX/WIN*)
á,é,í,ó,ú
agudo (acute)
stress/open
á - ah
é - eh
í -
ó -
ú -
lá
[option e] + a/e/i/o/u
[‘] + a/e/i/o/u
â,ê,ô
circunflexo (circumflex)
stress/closed
â - uh
ê - ay
ô -
câmera
[option i] + a/e/o
[^] + a/e/o
à
grave (grave)
a+a = à
à - ahh
À casa
[option `] + a
[`] + a
ã,õ
til (tilde)
Nasalization
irmã, caminhões
[option n] + a/o
[~] + a/o
ç
cedilha (cedilla)
soft ‘s’
calças
[option c]
[‘] + c
- You need to switch your keyboard to United States International.
Other Important Tips
Noun vs Verb
It is common for a verb in the 1st person present form and the related noun to be the same word but they are usually pronounced slightly different. When this happens, the noun is pronounced with a closed vowel and the verb is pronounced with an open vowel.
Examples
o remo, eu remo o piloto, eu piloto o almoço, eu almoço
Back-to-Back Consonants
Often, when two consonants come one after another in a word, it can be hard for Brazilians to pronounce them so instead, they will throw a “e” in between.
Examples
ritmo objetivo digno advogado
Closing
Pronunciation can be annoying to study but will pay off huge in the end. Learning how the different vowels, constants, accent marks, and stresses work in Portuguese will allow you to pronounce the words you learn correctly from the start.
The trickiest pronunciation there is
