Os sons do português
In this lesson, you will learn the main sounds of Brazilian Portuguese: the vowels, the nasal sounds, LH, NH, the two R sounds and how T and D change before an I sound.
Vowels
Portuguese vowels are short and clear. E and O have two sounds: open (with an accent like é and ó) and closed (ê and ô).
| Vowel | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a | father | casa |
| é (open) | bed | café |
| ê (closed) | say, without the y | você |
| i | see | vida |
| ó (open) | law | avó |
| ô (closed) | go, short | avô |
| u | food | tudo |
At the end of a word, an unstressed e sounds like i, and an unstressed o sounds like u: leite (LAY-tchee), obrigado (oh-bree-GAH-doo).
Nasal sounds
When you see ã, õ, or an M or N closing a syllable, part of the air goes through your nose. English has no sound like this, so say the vowel and let it hum.
- pão
- mãe
- bom
- irmão
LH and NH
LH = the lli in million: filho, trabalho.
NH = the ny in canyon: vinho, amanhã.
The two R sounds
At the start of a word, and when it is double (RR), R sounds like the English h: Rio (HEE-oo), carro (KAH-hoo).
One R between vowels is a quick tap, like the tt in the American "better": caro (KAH-roo).
Pay attention! carro and caro are different words. The double R changes the meaning.
T and D before an I sound
In most of Brazil, T and D change before an I sound, including the final E that sounds like I: T becomes tch and D becomes dj.
- dia (DJEE-ah)
- noite (NOY-tchee)
- tia (TCHEE-ah)