Speaking Portuguese: 30 phrases and words to know for a stay in Portugal

September 27, 2021

Speaking Portuguese! It’s not an easy thing to do, but when you decide to live in Portugal, learning Pessoa’s language is an important step! Your first steps won’t always be easy, but a few words and phrases will help you communicate with the locals and integrate as quickly as possible!

Mind you, the idea of this article is not to take the position of a Portuguese teacher, firstly, because I’m not, and secondly, because even though I’ve been living in Portugal for almost 10 years, I’m far from mastering Portuguese perfectly, and I have a wonderful French accent – I hear accents are charming, do you think that’s true? Because I doubt it 🙂 –

But despite this, I chose to write this article because I thought: “I’m moving to Portugal, what can be my “survival kit” to get by vocabulary-wise in the first few weeks?”. So here are a few words/phrases that might come in handy for your first steps in Portugal. Of course, this list is far from exhaustive, and I’m delighted to invite you to share in the comments of the Facebook post linked to this article, the words and phrases that “saved” your life when you arrived here. I had a lot of fun making this article and I hope you enjoy it.

And if you want to go further, here are two other articles you might like:

Speaking Portuguese in my daily life

Parabéns > Happy birthday / Congratulations: This expression is used both to wish someone a happy birthday and to congratulate them. So when you hear someone say “Parabéns” to another person, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s their birthday 🙂

Onde esta .. / Onde fica? > Where is …? a question you’ll probably have to ask to get directions!

Fica perto / longe? > Is it near / far?

Tudo bem > Ça va / tout va bien: this can be used both to ask if the person is well, and to say that you’re well.

Como està? >How are you? a little more formal than “Tudo Bem?

Gosto de … > J’aime: an important word for expressing your taste, but nothing to do with love for someone, which in this case is “amo-te”

Eu não falo muito bem português > I don’t speak Portuguese very well: in the early days, you’ll probably use this phrase a lot 🙂

Pode falar mais devagar, por favor? > Can you speak more slowly, please?

Não percebi, pode repetir por favor > I didn’t understand, can you please repeat? this is a phrase you’ll need to master in the early stages, as you’ll probably often be asked to repeat it, so don’t be afraid to do so – it’s normal!

Não sei > I don’t know: An important phrase to know, because at first you don’t know everything!

Eu preciso de > I need : To express your various needs

O que é isso > What is it? curiosity is a great trait, especially when you arrive in a new country, so don’t be afraid to ask!

Speaking Portuguese: polite expressions

Bom dia > Good morning: “Bom dia” is usually said in the morning until lunchtime, but you can say it all day if you’re afraid of getting tangled up with other people.

Boa tarde > Good morning: grossomodo in the afternoon, between lunchtime and bedtime

Boa noite > Good evening: when night has fallen

Obrigada, obrigado > Thank you: with an “a” at the end when it’s you ladies saying “Thank you”, and an “o” at the end when it’s you gentlemen saying “Thank you”

Por favor / faz favor > S’il vous plait: “faz favor” is a little more formal than “por favor”

Com licença > Please excuse me: if you have to pass but someone is in your way, for example

Prazer > Enchantée: when someone introduces you for the first time

De nada > You’re welcome: as in Spanish

Speaking Portuguese in a restaurant

Frango > Chicken: a staple of Portuguese gastronomy, so it’s essential that you know this word, which will come in very handy. It’s often referred to as “frango grelhado” = grilled chicken, because you’ll see that in Portugal, fish and meat are often grilled, as almost every restaurant has a barbecue.

Peixe > Fish: ditto in Portugal, you’re “obliged” to eat fish – a country with so much coastline, you can’t afford not to! The fish is very fresh and often grilled, as is the chicken. My favorite fish (and this may come in handy): dourada (sea bream … easy to guess, you might say!), robalo (sea bass … more complicated at once :)), linguado (sole … to know :)),

Carne > Meat: if you’re more of a meat person, it’s important to know this word in restaurants 🙂

Bacalhau > Cod: I often talk about it in my articles on gastronomy, cod is part of Portugal’s national heritage, a must!

Vinho > Wine: to accompany these delicious dishes, how about a glass of wine? You bet! And wine is super-easy to say: it’s “vinho”, so you just need to know the colors depending on what you prefer: vinho tinto (red), vinho branco (white), vinho rosé (there’s relatively little of it in Portugal), and the famous vinho Verde (green wine), summer’s must-have!

Agua > Water: after drinking wine, it’s important to drink a little water anyway. In Portugal, you’ll always be asked whether you’d like agua natural (room-temperature water) or agua fresca (cold water).

Queria reservar uma mesa > I’d like to reserve a table: it’s very important to master this phrase, especially as with covid it can be a good idea to reserve your restaurants in advance, as they can fill up quickly depending on quotas.

Estou com fome / com sede > I’m hungry / thirsty: to express your vital needs :))))

O que me aconselha? > What do you recommend? at first, you won’t know all the dishes on the menu, although you’ll learn quickly enough. But I’d advise you to ask the restaurants you go to what they specialize in and what they recommend. You won’t be disappointed!

Pequeno almoço, almoço, lanche, jantar > Breakfast, lunch, snacks, dinner: What about aperitifs? You might ask! Well, we don’t really talk about aperitifs in Portugal, but snacking (lanche) is very important here 🙂

A conta por favor > L’addition s’il vous plait (please pay the bill): because you have to pay for your restaurant when you leave.

Onde esta a casa de banho? > Where are the toilets? In coconut times, useful for washing your hands before your meal or simply for your transit 🙂

Speaking Portuguese for health

Preciso ir a um médico > I need to see a doctor: this is vocabulary I hope you won’t use too much, but it’s important to know.

Eu não me sinto bem > I’m not feeling well

Tenho uma dor aqui > I have a pain here

Onde fica a farmácia/hospital por favor? > Where is the pharmacy/hospital please?

Socorro! > Help!

In conclusion

And that’s it! You now have your little vocabulary “survival kit” for speaking Portuguese during a stay in Portugal or for the early days of your life in Portugal.

As mentioned in the introduction, if you’d like to take your Portuguese further, here are two other articles you might like to read, both related to the Portuguese language

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