-Portuguese (português)
is similar to Spanish but also quite distinct. Portuguese has a variety of
sounds that do not exist in Spanish. Portuguese is related to Galician, whereas
what is now known as Spanish is really castellano, which is the dialect spoken in Castilla.
-Brazilian Portuguese is pronounced differently than Continental
Portuguese, and Brazilian Portuguese has a very distinct accent from
Continental Portuguese. Brazilian Portuguese has a variety of state and
regional accents in and of itself.
-Continental Portuguese is
Portuguese from Portugal.
-Brazilian Portuguese is the Portuguese spoken in Brazil. Brazilian
Portuguese has been influenced by African languages from West Africa, from
Central Africa in the Congo River basin, and from Angola. Brazilian Portuguese
is also influenced by the various Tupí-Guaraní peoples who were the indigenous
inhabitants of Brazil.
Brazilian Portuguese is the same language as Continental Portuguese but
with a lot of grammatical and pronunciation differences that have been
standardized over time. Many things said in Brazil are grammatically incorrect
for people from Portugal, but over time they have become standardized and
deemed grammatically correct. Brazilian Portuguese has a lot of words borrowed
from African languages such as Yoruba spoken in Nigeria and a few other West
African countries. The word “moleque” meaning kid is a Yoruba word. Brazilian
Portuguese also has a lot of words that come from the Tupí-Guaraní “Indians”
(for lack of a better word) The Tupí-Guaraní people were the indigenous people
that inhabited part of South America. They still exist but in greatly reduced
numbers due to disease, slavery, and colonialism. Maracujá for instance is a
Tupí-Guaraní word. It means “passion fruit.” “Carioca”, which now means a
native of Rio de Janeiro, is a Tupí-Guaraní word.
-Brazilian Portuguese is a rich and interesting language worthy of
study, and anyone interested in learning has a variety of books, videos,
audiobooks, and classes at their disposal.
Random
Brazilian Portuguese Grammar Notes: Brazilians rarely answer
questions with the word “sim” which means “yes,” rather Brazilians repeat the
verb used in the question in the correct person and number. For example, “Você
vai pra praia?” means “Are you going to the beach?” The answer to this is
“Vou,” which means “I am going.” You might also hear “Vou, sim.” Brazilian
Portuguese is complicated, and an explanation of it here would be straying too
far off topic. I included this discussion of “sim” because it is a common thing
said by people that do not know Portuguese very well or not at all.
O = “The” in the masculine
form. Its plural is Os.
A = “The” in the feminine
form. Its plural is As.
Um = a/an in the masculine.
Its plural is uns (in the plural it means “some/ a few,
etc)
Uma = a/an in the feminine.
Its plural is umas.
Brazilian
Portuguese Pronunciation Guide:
Certain sounds are virtually
impossible to explain their pronunciation without hearing them, so I’ve
included some Google Translate links due to the audio feature Google Translate
now has. Bear with the computer voice on the pronunciation. I did not know how
to record pronunciations of the various unique Portuguese sounds and upload
them into this guide.
Google Translate now has a
feature where Portuguese words as wells as words in many common languages will
be pronounced for you if you click on the audio button. This is very helpful to
anyone that wants to learn how to pronounce the various sounds common in
Portuguese. Below I’ll provide the links to various words using the sounds
mentioned so you can hear their pronunciation.
R - The letter “R” is pronounced like an “H” when it begins a word in
Brazilian Portuguese but not Continental Portuguese. The letter “R” is rolled
when it is found in the middle of the word and not followed by a consonant. The
letter ‘R” is pronounced like a French “R” when it ends a word.
Listen to the pronunciation of “RUA” meaning “street.”
RR – Double
“R” has an “H” sound in Brazilian Portuguese.
CH – “CH” in Brazilian
Portuguese is pronounced like an “sh” in English. For example, the “ch” in the
word “gaúcho” is pronounced like an “SH.”
T – Certain letter “T’s” in
Brazilian Portuguese are pronounced like a “CH” in English.
D – Certain “D’s” in
Brazilian Portuguese are pronounced with a “DJ” sound as in the “J” in
“jersey.”
S – a single s in the middle
of a word is pronounced as if the “s” were in fact a “z.” So, “casa” is
pronounced like “caza”
Ç= Pronounced like an “s”. For example, golaço
Words
Ending in the Letter “L”: Words ending in the letter “L” are pronounced as if
the L were a “u”. For example, ‘Brasil” (Brazil
in Portuguese is spelled with the letter “S”) is pronounced as if it were “BraziU.” Note how the “s” in “Brasil” is pronounced like a “z.” The word, “normal” is pronounced as if it were spelled “normAO” or “normAU.” This “ao” isn’t the“ão” discussed below. So Brasil is pronounced “Brah-
ziu”
LH – “Lh” in Portuguese is similar to the “GLI” in Italian. Below is the link
for “trabalho” which means work.
NH – “NH” in Brazilian Portuguese is the equivalent of “Ñ” in Spanish or “GN”
in Italian. Below is the word amanhã which means tomorrow. Notice this word has
“nh” and “ã”
à – the following vowels and
diphthongs with what is called a tilde in Spanish can only be explain by
listening to the letters pronounced. Note that the word “PAU” and “PÃO” have
drastically different meanings. Below is the pronunciation of the word
maçã which means “apple” Notice that “ç” is pronounced like an “s”
ÃO –
Requires audio to explain the pronunciation. Below
is the link for “Pão” which means “bread.”
ÃE – Below is the link for
the word “mãe” which means mother.
ÃES –
Requires audio to explain the pronunciation. Below is the link for Mães which
means “mothers”
ÕES –
Requires audio to explain the pronunciation. Below is the link for “palavrões”
which means cuss words or bad words.
E – Words that end in E in
Brazilian Portuguese are pronounced as if the “e” were a double “e” in English.
So it sounds like an “I” in Spanish or Italian.
M – Words that end in “M” in
Brazilian Portuguese are pronounced as if the “M” were an “N”
O – Frequently Brazilians
will pronounce words that end in “O” as if it were a“U.” So, “americano” will sound like “americanU”.
This is not always done but you will hear it frequently.
Soccer (Futebol) Vocabulary:
(M) = masculine
(F) = Feminine
Futebol= soccer
CBF = Confederação Brasileira de
Futebol
Seleção = The Brazilian national
team
A Verde
e Amarela/ O Verde e Amarelo = You’ll see this
term in the masculine and feminine form depending on what it’s modifying. You could say “a camisa verde e
amarela” or “o time verde e amarelo.” Either way, this means
“The Green and Yellow.” This is a nickname for the Brazilian national team
because the jersey is green and yellow like the Brazilian flag, which is green
and yellow with a blue globe in the center showing the Southern constellations.
Futebol
arte – This is the real term for beautiful, attacking soccer. “Joga
bonito” is a
sentence. “Jogo” with an “O” means game or “I play, I am playing, I do play,
etc.” “Bonito” is technically an adjective in its
masculine form as opposed to an adverb. So, JOGA with an “A” does not
mean “game.” JOGO with an “O” means game.
Jogo
bonito = futebol arte. Unlike the Nike commercials which said “Joga bonito”
with an “A” on “jogo,” the real term other than futebol arte for attractive
attacking soccer is “JOGO BONITO” and NOT
“JOGA BONITO.”
Futebol de salão/futsal = Futsal. This is indoor soccer played with a specific ball, and it is an official
FIFA sport with its own rules, tournaments, and teams. Many of the Brazilian
greats started by playing futebol de salão. Such players include, Ronaldo,
Ronaldinho, and Robinho. Falcão is the best futsal player in the world, and he
is also considered the best ever.
Bola=ball
Jogo = game. Jogo is also the first persons singular of
“jogar” meaning “to play.” NOTE: “Jogar” also means
“throw.”
Jogão = a big or important game.
You might also hear “jogaço,”
although this isn’t technically a grammatically correct word.
Jogar
futebol = to play soccer
Jogar bola = to play soccer
(Literally, “to play ball”). This expression implies soccer as opposed to
basketball or other sports.
Pelada = pick up soccer game.
Literally, the word, “pelada” means nude or naked; this is the
feminine form of the adjective. “Pelado” is the masculine form of the word nude
or naked.
Campo = field
Pé = foot
Pés = feet
Mão = hand
Mãos = hands
Perna = leg
Pernas = legs
Coxa = thigh
Coxas = thighs
Canela = shin
Canelas = shins
Caneleiras = shin guards
Tornozelo = ankle
Tornozelos = ankles
Joelho = knee
Joelhos = knees
Peito = chest
Cabeça = head
Frente = forehead
Braço = arm
Rosto / Cara = face
Cara = dude, guy. Literally,
“cara” means face. “Rosto” is more common
Devagar = slowly / slow
Rápido = fast
Chutões = long balls
Craque = a really good soccer
player, a baller, a “crack”
Um
cai-cai = a diver, a flopper, someone who fakes injuries, etc. The is the same
as a “clavadista” in Spanish.
Chuteiras
(plural) = soccer shoes (with cleats)
Tênis
de futsal = futsal shoes / indoor soccer shoes
Bora = Let’s go. Come on. Bora
comes from Vamos embora which literally means “Let’s leave” or “We’re leaving.”
Bora is short for embora, and Brazilians say or yell “bora” to say “come on” or
“let’s go”
Gol = goal
Fazer um gol / marcar um gol = to score a goal. Fazer is the infinitive form of “to do or to make.” Fazer can be
translated as other things in Portuguese depending on context
Golaço = golazo
Golear = to score a lot of goals
on an opposing team. This verb also exist in Spanish.
Goleada = Beating an opposing team
by a bunch of goals. Scoring a ton of goals on an opposing team. 3-0, 4-0, etc
Porrada = Porrada is a
really bad physical beating of any kind. Porrada means “a beat down” or
“severe beating.” Porrada is technically a physical beating, but it also means
to beat a team really badly. A
“goleada” is a “porrada,” but a “porrada” is not necessarily a “goleada.” One
could say that a 5-0 loss for example was a goleada and a porrada. NOTE: PORRA is a cuss word in
Portuguese and also a medical term. If you want to know
what it means, you will be able to find it. I cannot write it here.
Tiro (pronounced Cheer-Oo/u) = shot (Not used as often as CHUTE)
Rede = net
balançar a rede = to score. Literally, “to shake / swing the net.”
Pegar
de primeira = to hit first time
Chutar
de fora da área = to shoot from outside the box
Passar
a bola = to pass the ball
Passe = pass
Cavadinha = chip
Correr – to run (Remember
this is pronounced “coh-hair” with the last r being a French “r”)
Perder – to lose
Vencer – to win
Errar = to miss
cartão
amarelo = yellow card
cartão vermelho = red card
Travessão = cross bar
Trave = upright,
vertical post
Cabeçada
= header
Derrubar = to knock down, take
down, push over, topple, etc
Atropelar = to run over
Marcar = to mark, guard
The
next four terms are interrelated and trace their origins to capoeira and/or
street life:
