Pronunciation

Noticing the subtle differences between sounds is the key to mastering European Portuguese comprehension and pronunciation. How many can you get right? (Note: Our Premium Members have access to an entire unit focused just on Minimal Pairs!)

By popular demand, Rui and Joel return to one of their classic podcast formats. They feature one of the 600+ “Shorties” available on our platform and explore vocabulary and expressions. Later, Rui helps Joel fix some of his more subtle pronunciation errors in European Portuguese – are you making the same mistakes?

Commonly referred to as “minimal pairs”, practicing hearing the difference between these similar-sounding words can help you unlock a whole new level of comprehension and pronunciation in European Portuguese.

Damiana and Rui help Joel with that tricky Portuguese “lh” sound! Brace yourself for some awkward mouth and nostril close-ups 👄🥴 (Check our Site Index for more pronunciation content!)

The Portuguese Language Orthographic Agreement of 1990 (Acordo Ortográfico da Língua Portuguesa de 1990, a.k.a. the ) came into effect in May 2009. Its goal was to standardize the spelling of Portuguese across Portuguese-speaking countries, particularly Brazil and Portugal. However, its implementation was met with criticism and many practical challenges. First, let’s address a common […]

Joel asks an Internet service provider about their most unusual customer inquiries.

Don’t get apoquentado! Joana is here to teach us more about pronunciation and vocabulary variations in the Alentejan Portuguese dialect.

Joana talks about the Alentejo accent.

How do you pronounce “bochecha” (cheek)?

Zé video-calls his friend Sara to ask for help choosing an outfit for an upcoming wedding. Language focus: Pronunciation of s, z, ç, and ch  

Practice that tricky “lh” sound as Carlos tells Sara about his daily troubles. Try listening line by line and repeating the words containing ‘lh’ out loud.

The arrival of spring reminds Rita of the weekends spent at her grandparents’ farm. As you hear about her favourite memories, you can practice your “R” pronunciation and the pretérito imperfeito do indicativo tense.

After exploring the Pronunciation Guide for European Portuguese Vowels and Pronunciation Guide for European Portuguese Consonants, you probably had a better sense of how to pronounce the various sounds of Portuguese in isolation. However, when you listened for these sounds throughout the Units and in the Shorties, you may have heard some things you didn’t expect! […]

The Portuguese R is one of the more difficult sounds to master. We covered it briefly in our Pronunciation Guide to European Portuguese Consonants, but it deserves a bit more explanation! Pronunciation varies across different Portuguese dialects, so you will likely hear variations in the the R (as well as other sounds). We’ll focus on […]

Jorge tells Rute about all the bad luck he’s had lately. As a pronunciation challenge, see if you can notice all the similar sounding words (i.e. Minimal Pairs) spread throughout the dialogue.

A photographer struggles to take the perfect photo. See how many minimal pairs you can find throughout the narrative.

How Do You Pronounce the Letter X in Portuguese? The letter X is one of the most challenging sounds in Portuguese because the pronunciation rules are quite variable. Let’s hear what Sherlock has to say on the topic:  To review, let’s look at the 5 groups of possible pronunciations:

In this article by Lena Strang, originally published in Tomorrow Magazine, she shares an inside look at the Algarvian dialect and how it complements the lively culture of the Algarve region of Portugal. Throughout the article, you can listen to examples of how Portuguese is spoken in the Algarve. Then, to explore the character and […]

Mastering the consonant sounds are essential to understanding and speaking European Portuguese. While many sounds are similar in English, there are a handful that are extra challenging to learn and pronounce, including “s”, “r”, “lh”, “x” and “z”. Check out the complete reference guide with audio examples here! Chapters: 00:00 Intro          […]

A teacher explains the basics of image editing to her class. While the students practice with tools and techniques, you can practice nasal vowels with all the words that end in -em, -am, -um, -im, and -om!

 Portuguese and English share a common alphabet, for the most part, and many of the sounds associated with each consonant are quite similar. If you’re a native English speaker, the pronunciations to pay special attention to are those associated with the vowels, which we will cover in a separate learning note, as well as […]

It’s time to take a deep dive into the pronunciation of vowels in European Portuguese! First we’ll invite you to play around with this interactive guide and then we’ll cover all the factors that go into creating the variety of subtle variations between each vowel sound. Pronunciation of Vowels in European Portuguese Explore the guide […]

What’s the difference between European Portuguese vs Brazilian Portuguese? For starters, European Portuguese is the variant spoken in Portugal and is more similar to the dialects spoken in Africa and Asia. (It is sometimes called Continental Portuguese, or even Portuguese Portuguese! 😄  ) Given the size and population of Brazil, however, the Brazilian Portuguese set […]