25 Nice Portuguese Phrases
Portuguese Phrases
Entering a new linguistic territory without knowing their way with words is utterly disastrous. Do you think you are geared up well enough to converse with a Portuguese speaker? Do you know any Portuguese phrases?
What if it becomes essential for you to travel to a Portuguese-speaking country? Being a Romance language, Portuguese is a descendant of Latin, brought to the Iberian Peninsula by Roman soldiers, settlers, and merchants in 218 BC.
You’ll indeed look for ways to learn at least the basic Portuguese expressions. Because if you are going to be on some official business, getting lost in translation is the last thing you want to do. So, what is the mantra to get your way around? We are here with the top and most essential phrases you’ll need during your stay. But before loading up on that Portuguese vocabulary, we would like to tell you some significant bits about the Portuguese language.
European Portuguese vs. Brazilian Portuguese
This is important. Learning a new language is a commitment, one that requires more patience and effort than you can imagine. And if it’s Portuguese you are planning to learn, you must know that it’s the official language of almost ten countries.
And with every country, there’s a dialect distinction. The difference in pronunciation and, of course, the difference in the accent ultimately have an impact. Moreover, European Portuguese is considered more mumbled and rougher than the Brazilian version of the same vocabulary. Could you read about our blog? How close is Spanish to Portuguese?
The good news is that they can all understand each other. Whether your visit will be to Brazil or Portugal, with our help, you’ll be a safe person. So, the real deal is learning with conviction. We’ll give you a good account of the sentences you can use in basic situations. We guarantee that we’ll help you perfect your crucial vocabulary terms. Your hellos and goodbyes will be met with a hale and hearty response from your Portuguese-speaking friends.
25 Nice Portuguese Phrase
As much as you want to become a proficient Portuguese Speaker overnight, this will not happen. So, instead, we got realistic and found the essential expressions you’ll need during your stay. And for what it’s worth, they are easy to learn. You can also use Google or a Portuguese learning app to learn the correct pronunciation of these basic Portuguese phrases.
Before moving on to the actual phrases, let us give you a few tips for your learning journey.
Learning a couple of phrases may not seem complicated, but the key to ensuring that you are using them correctly is placing them in the proper context. Without practicing these terms, words, and phrases in the appropriate context, you won’t be able to learn their meaning and use them correctly. Bottomline context is essential.
Watch Portuguese movies, videos, music, travel documentaries, news, and articles and stay in touch with the latest happenings in the country. You may not have months to catch up with everything, but a week or two will suffice.
To talk like Portuguese people, talk out loud. Listen to how you sound. This trick will help you learn a phrase by heart and enable you to speak like a native speaker.
Okay, now that we have given you the tips, time to move on to the survival phrases we promised.
Top 10 Greeting Phrases
So, the very first one is
- Bom Dia/ Bom Tarde/ Bao Noite means Good Morning, Good Afternoon, and Good Night, respectively.
- Ola means hello
- Oi means Hi
Our fourth one is more for your telephone talk. They will come in handy if you want to call your tour guide or the hotel manager.
- Alo/Esta La
Both these mean hello, but when you are on the phone. Here, we have given you both versions, so if you are in Brazil, you’ll use the first one, and if you are in Portugal, you’ll use the second one.
- Tchau means bye or Goodbye.
- Ate Logo means see you later.
- Ate Amanha means see you tomorrow, so you can use this one when you are confident you will see them tomorrow.
- Adeus is used formally for saying Goodbye.
- Alguém aqui fala inglês? means does anyone here speak English?
- Tudo Bem? How are you? To which you can answer with Eu Estou bem, e voc/ e tu? I am good, how are you?
- Como vai? This one means How it’s going.
Again, it would help if you remembered that e voc? is used as” and you?” in Brazil, whereas e tu? is used as “and you?” in Portugal. So, use them accordingly.
Show Them Your Manners with These 7 Phrases:
Good manners can help you build your impressive image in front of the Portuguese. Moreover, they prevent you from sounding culturally inappropriate no matter which city or country you are traveling to. So, these common phrases will save you from embarrassment, whether it’s Brazil or Portugal.
- Por Favor, if you are an avid watcher of Spanish movies or enjoyed that famous show, “Mind Your Language,” then you know this.
Formally, “excuse me” is a common expression used in Brazil to grab someone’s attention politely. Por Favor can also be used like the British use Beg your pardon during conversations.
- Obrigado/Obrigada
This means thank you. However, an interesting thing you must remember is that the words differ for masculine and feminine. Men and boys use Obrigado, whereas girls and women use Obrigada.
- De Nada seems like it means no problem, but it means you’re welcome, which is the same, but yeah, say it when someone says Obrigado or Obrigada.
- Desculpa/Desculpe
Both of these terms are used for “I am sorry.” However, Desculpe is a more formal way of saying I am sorry.
- Perdao
This means forgive me or pardon me.
- Prazer
It means “Nice To Meet You”.
- O Senhor/ A Senhora
This is used when you want to formally address a man (o Senhor) and a woman (a Senhora).
Travel Questions and Queries:
So, we know you are traveling and will most likely stay at a resort or a guest house.
And it would help if you didn’t keep wondering how to find a loo. Hence, we are starting with the self-explanatory one.
- Onde e o banheiro? It means where the bathroom is in Brazilian Portuguese.
- Onde fica a casa de banho? Does this one mean where the bathroom in European Portuguese is?
- Quanto Custa? So, you are out shopping and like a watch but don’t know how to ask the price. This one above is right because it means, “How much does this cost?”
- Que Horas Sao, if you want to ask, what time is it? Then this is how you say it.
- Que Horas Abre/Fecha?
- If you like a pizza place or a pub and don’t know which time they open or close, this is how you can ask them. By saying Que Horas Abre, you can ask what time this place opens, and with Que Horas fecha, you can ask what time you guys close. And now the essential ones, the 24th and 25th on our list.
- Qual e o sue nome? “What is your name?”
- Me Chamo, “My Name is”
So, this is it, guys; we think we have listed the essential sentences for you to get passed during your visit. However, if you love languages and want to learn more, use a Portuguese learning app for Portuguese phrases.
Portuguese Proverbs
When you learn a new language, you don’t always immediately think of the sayings. But quotes, phrases, and idioms ideally introduce a foreign language. Learning Portuguese idioms and proverbs will make you feel at home in the language much faster. Learning Portuguese sayings is like a kind of turbo language course! When you learn proverbs, you expand your vocabulary and better understand Portuguese and Brazilian culture, values, and everyday life.
In the Portuguese language & culture, there are as many sayings as in English or German because they all find their origin in universal human experiences: love, unhappiness, patience, the pain after a breakup.
Portuguese quotes about hope
Hope is one of the great themes that often comes up in proverbs. Hope is universal; everyone hopes for something or someone. In the Portuguese language, you will find this topic in many proverbs:
- Não éporque uma Andorinha more que acaba a primavera: The death of a swallow does not mean that spring is over – This saying is easy to understand: No matter what situation you are in, there is always hope, as long as no judgment has been pronounced,
- Não é porque o passarinho estar na gaiola que o impede de cantar: The bird is caged, but that doesn’t stop it from singing – This proverb teaches us that you can achieve a lot with the little you have. You don’t need much to keep going steadily your way,
- Um homem sem paciência é como uma lâmpada sem azeite: A person without patience is like a lamp without oil – you need courage, patience, and, of course, hope to achieve your goals in the long term.
- É na dificuldade que se prova a amizade: Friendship proves itself in adversity – This proverb also reminds us that we must not give up, even when everything looks bleak. With a bit of will and hope, together you can move mountains. That’s a lovely saying, too!
- ‘Saudades’ roughly translates to ‘I miss you/something’ but has a deep longing. However, it’s often used in Brazil that you’ll have “saudades” for someone you’ve met briefly. “Que saudades” is an exclamation of how much you miss someone or something. After leaving Brazil, you can say, “Que saudades do Brasil!” which means, “I miss Brazil so much!”
Portuguese quotes on love
The other significant and recurring theme of proverbs besides hope is love. Who has never been in love, fallen under the spell of a magical attraction, never fulfilled a longing, or experienced a separation? Portuguese are also human; their culture has produced many inspirational sayings about jealousy, love, and relationships.
- E como tudo na vida, dê tempo ao tempo e ele encarregar-se hà de resolver os problemas: In life, it is like with everything, give time to time, and it will solve all problems (Saramago) – You could also use this saying in the hope category, but it also applies to the problem of waiting in love (and hope in love).
- Amar é a inocência eterna, ea unica inocência é de nõa pensar: to love is eternal innocence, And the only virtue is not to think (Fernando Pessoa) – feelings want to be felt and let go; one has to surrender to love.
- O amor com amor se paga: Love is gifted with love – Love is described here as a feeling but an actual exchange that can only work if experienced together.
- Quem sabe amar sabe Castlegar: He who knows how to love knows how to punish – This proverb makes us understand that love is not always rosy, that sometimes there are moments when your feet land back on earth, and the pink one must take off glasses to face reality.
- ‘Um beijo’ means ‘a kiss,’ and ‘um abraço’ means ‘hug.’ They are the usual way of saying Goodbye, with women using ‘um beijo’ to other women and men, while men use ‘um beijo’ only for women and ‘um abraço’ only for men. You can say, “Bye, um, Beijo!” To say. Which means “Goodbye, a kiss!”
- Nossa Senhora is used as an exclamation when you hear bad or shocking news, see something surprising, or want to complain about a particularly frustrating situation. It means “Our Lady!” and is used in the sense of “Oh my God!” used. It is frequently shortened to “Nossa,” sometimes even just “Noss” when used in the middle of a conversation. “Nossa Senhora” is used in total for a particularly shocking moment.
FAQ’s
Te amo. The most traditional way to say ‘I love you in Brazilian Portuguese is te amo. Te adoro. To say ‘I adore you in Portuguese, you would say te adoro. Another romantic expression for a more serious relationship is você é o mundo para mim, which means ‘you are my world.’ When you feel that someone is the most important person or aspect of your life, in Portuguese, you can say você é tudo pra mim, which translates to ‘you are everything to me.
When saying hello or farewell in Portuguese, individuals use the phrases Bom dia, Boa tarde, and Boa noite, as in Olá, bom dia – Hello, good morning or Adeus, boa tarde – Goodbye and good afternoon to you. Before it gets dark, boa tarde is used, and after it gets dark, boa noite is utilized.
Some individuals, primarily ladies, kiss softly by bringing their lips near their faces, but most of the time, we merely kiss the air by touching cheek to cheek. Some prefer to deliver only one kiss on the cheek rather than two.
Licor Beiro, or simply Beiro, is a Portuguese liqueur produced in the Beira area of Portugal. It is the most widely drank alcoholic spirit in Portugal, dating back to the 19th century. It was first produced in the 19th century at Lous, in the Beira area, where it earned its name (Beiro means “from Beira”).