Introduction
The Brazilian Portuguese alphabet consists of 26 letters, similar to the English alphabet. However, the pronunciation of these letters and their combinations can differ significantly from English. This guide will help you understand how to pronounce Brazilian Portuguese letters and common letter combinations. We’ll use the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) for precise phonetic representations, but don’t worry if you’re not familiar with it – we’ll explain the sounds in simple terms too!
The Alphabet
Here’s the Brazilian Portuguese alphabet with the name of each letter:
| Letter | Name |
|---|---|
| A | á |
| B | bê |
| C | cê |
| D | dê |
| E | é |
| F | efe |
| G | gê |
| H | agá |
| I | i |
| J | jota |
| K | cá |
| L | ele |
| M | eme |
| N | ene |
| O | ó |
| P | pê |
| Q | quê |
| R | erre |
| S | esse |
| T | tê |
| U | u |
| V | vê |
| W | dáblio |
| X | xis |
| Y | ípsilon |
| Z | zê |
Now, let’s dive into how to pronounce each of these letters and some common combinations.
How to Pronounce Letters in Portuguese
Vowels
How to pronounce A in Portuguese
- Sound: /a/ (like ‘a’ in “father”)
- Name: á
- Example: amor (love) – /aˈmoʁ/
How to pronounce E in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /ɛ/ (like ‘e’ in “bed”) when stressed
- /e/ (like ‘ay’ in “say”) when unstressed
- Name: é
- Examples:
- café (coffee) – /kaˈfɛ/
- de (of) – /de/
How to pronounce I in Portuguese
- Sound: /i/ (like ‘ee’ in “see”)
- Name: i
- Example: ilha (island) – /ˈiʎɐ/
How to pronounce O in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /ɔ/ (like ‘o’ in “hot”) when stressed
- /o/ (like ‘o’ in “go”) when unstressed
- Name: ó
- Examples:
- avó (grandmother) – /aˈvɔ/
- ovo (egg) – /ˈovu/
How to pronounce U in Portuguese
- Sound: /u/ (like ‘oo’ in “boot”)
- Name: u
- Example: uva (grape) – /ˈuvɐ/
Consonants
How to pronounce B in Portuguese
- Sound: /b/ (like ‘b’ in “bad”)
- Name: bê
- Example: bola (ball) – /ˈbɔlɐ/
How to pronounce C in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /k/ before a, o, u
- /s/ before e, i
- Name: cê
- Examples:
- casa (house) – /ˈkazɐ/
- cedo (early) – /ˈsedu/
How to pronounce D in Portuguese
- Sound: /d/ (like ‘d’ in “dog”)
- Name: dê
- Example: dedo (finger) – /ˈdedu/
How to pronounce F in Portuguese
- Sound: /f/ (like ‘f’ in “fun”)
- Name: efe
- Example: faca (knife) – /ˈfakɐ/
How to pronounce G in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /ɡ/ before a, o, u
- /ʒ/ before e, i
- Name: gê
- Examples:
- gato (cat) – /ˈɡatu/
- gente (people) – /ˈʒẽtʃi/
How to pronounce H in Portuguese
- Sound: Silent (not pronounced)
- Name: agá
- Example: hora (hour) – /ˈɔɾɐ/
How to pronounce J in Portuguese
- Sound: /ʒ/ (like ‘s’ in “pleasure”)
- Name: jota
- Example: janeiro (January) – /ʒaˈnejɾu/
How to pronounce K in Portuguese
- Sound: /k/ (like ‘k’ in “kite”)
- Name: cá
- Example: kilo (kilogram) – /ˈkilu/
How to pronounce L in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /l/ at the beginning of syllables
- /w/ at the end of syllables
- Name: ele
- Examples:
- lua (moon) – /ˈluɐ/
- sol (sun) – /sɔw/
How to pronounce M in Portuguese
- Sound: /m/ (like ‘m’ in “moon”)
- Name: eme
- Example: mama (breast) – /ˈmɐmɐ/
How to pronounce N in Portuguese
- Sound: /n/ (like ‘n’ in “noon”)
- Name: ene
- Example: novo (new) – /ˈnovu/
How to pronounce P in Portuguese
- Sound: /p/ (like ‘p’ in “pan”)
- Name: pê
- Example: pato (duck) – /ˈpatu/
How to pronounce Q in Portuguese
- Sound: Always followed by U, pronounced as /k/
- Name: quê
- Example: que (that) – /ki/
How to pronounce R in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /ʁ/ (guttural ‘R’) at the beginning of words or doubled (RR)
- /ɾ/ (tapped ‘R’) between vowels
- Name: erre
- Examples:
- rua (street) – /ˈʁuɐ/, carro (car) – /ˈkaʁu/
- caro (expensive) – /ˈkaɾu/
How to pronounce S in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /s/ at the beginning of words or after consonants
- /z/ between vowels
- /ʃ/ or /ʒ/ at the end of syllables (varies by region)
- Name: esse
- Examples:
- saco (bag) – /ˈsaku/
- casa (house) – /ˈkazɐ/
- mais (more) – /majʃ/ or /majʒ/
How to pronounce T in Portuguese
- Sound: /t/ (like ‘t’ in “top”)
- Name: tê
- Example: teto (roof) – /ˈtetu/
How to pronounce V in Portuguese
- Sound: /v/ (like ‘v’ in “van”)
- Name: vê
- Example: vaca (cow) – /ˈvakɐ/
How to pronounce W in Portuguese
- Sound: /w/ (like ‘w’ in “water”)
- Name: dáblio
- Example: Wilson – /ˈwiwsõ/
How to pronounce X in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /ʃ/ (like ‘sh’ in “ship”)
- /ks/ (like ‘x’ in “box”)
- /z/ (like ‘z’ in “zebra”)
- Name: xis
- Examples:
- xícara (cup) – /ˈʃikaɾɐ/
- táxi (taxi) – /ˈtaksi/
- exame (exam) – /eˈzɐmi/
How to pronounce Y in Portuguese
- Sound: /i/ (like ‘ee’ in “see”)
- Name: ípsilon
- Example: yoga – /ˈjɔɡɐ/
How to pronounce Z in Portuguese
- Sound: /z/ (like ‘z’ in “zebra”)
- Name: zê
- Example: zelo (zeal) – /ˈzelu/
Common Letter Combinations in Portuguese
How to pronounce CH in Portuguese
- Sound: /ʃ/ (like ‘sh’ in “ship”)
- Example: chuva (rain) – /ˈʃuvɐ/
How to pronounce LH in Portuguese
- Sound: /ʎ/ (similar to ‘lli’ in “million”)
- Example: filho (son) – /ˈfiʎu/
How to pronounce NH in Portuguese
- Sound: /ɲ/ (like ‘ny’ in “canyon”)
- Example: manhã (morning) – /mɐˈɲã/
How to pronounce RR in Portuguese
- Sound: /ʁ/ (guttural ‘R’ sound)
- Example: carro (car) – /ˈkaʁu/
How to pronounce SS in Portuguese
- Sound: /s/ (like ‘s’ in “sun”)
- Example: passar (to pass) – /paˈsar/
How to pronounce QU in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /k/ before e and i
- /kw/ before a and o
- Examples:
- que (that) – /ki/
- quanto (how much) – /ˈkwɐ̃tu/
How to pronounce GU in Portuguese
- Sounds:
- /ɡ/ before e and i
- /ɡw/ before a and o
- Examples:
- guerra (war) – /ˈɡɛʁɐ/
- água (water) – /ˈaɡwɐ/
Special Marks in Portuguese
In Portuguese, we use special marks called “diacritical marks” on some letters. These marks can change how a letter is pronounced or which syllable is stressed in a word. Here’s what they mean:
How to pronounce words with acute accent (´) in Portuguese
- This little line slanting up and to the right (´) is called an acute accent.
- It tells you which part of the word to stress (say more strongly).
- It can also change how a vowel sounds.
- Example: café (coffee) – /kaˈfɛ/ (say it like “ca-FEH”)
How to pronounce words with circumflex accent (^) in Portuguese
- This little pointy hat (^) is called a circumflex accent.
- It also shows which part of the word to stress.
- It makes vowels sound more closed (say it with your mouth a bit more closed).
- Example: côco (coconut) – /ˈkoku/ (say it like “KOH-koo”)
How to pronounce words with tilde (~) in Portuguese
- This squiggly line (~) is called a tilde.
- It makes vowels sound nasal (like you’re talking a bit through your nose).
- Example: mãe (mother) – /mɐ̃j/ (say it like “mung” but cut off before the “g”)
How to pronounce words with cedilla (ç) in Portuguese
- This little squiggle under the letter c (ç) is called a cedilla.
- It makes the ‘c’ sound like ‘s’ when it comes before ‘a’, ‘o’, or ‘u’.
- Example: açúcar (sugar) – /aˈsukar/ (say it like “a-SOO-kar”)
Stress Rules in Portuguese
Knowing which part of a word to stress (say more strongly) can be tricky in Portuguese. Here are some general rules:
- Words ending in ‘a’, ‘e’, ‘o’, ‘am’, ’em’, ‘en’ are usually stressed on the next-to-last syllable.
Example: casa (house) – /ˈkazɐ/ (say it like “KA-za”) - Words ending in ‘i’, ‘u’, ‘l’, ‘r’, ‘z’, or in nasal sounds are usually stressed on the last syllable.
Example: Brasil (Brazil) – /bɾaˈziw/ (say it like “bra-ZEEL”) - If a word doesn’t follow these rules, it will have an accent mark to show you where to stress it.
Example: café (coffee) – /kaˈfɛ/ (say it like “ca-FEH”)
In the following sections, you can dive in to mastering your pronuncation of Brazilian Portuguese.
Next: Brazilian Portuguese Vowels: Your Guide to Rhythmic Pronunciation