A1Lesson 5: Sounds of Brazilian Portuguese
Portuguese nasal sounds, produced by letting air flow through both mouth and nose simultaneously, are marked by til (~) or occur before m/n, creating five distinct nasal vowels that don't exist in English.
Read the guide publicly, then use Falando to save progress and practice this A1 grammar point.
Free accounts can study A1 grammar in the app and keep track of exercises and review.
| Letter | Nasal Sound | How to Produce | Example Words |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | /ã/ | "ah" through nose | mãe, pão, falam |
| E | /ẽ/ | "eh" through nose | bem, tempo, sem |
| I | /ĩ/ | "ee" through nose | sim, fim, jardim |
| O | /õ/ | "oh" through nose | bom, com, ontem |
| U | /ũ/ | "oo" through nose | um, algum, jejum |
Always nasal, no exceptions:
| Combination | Sound | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| -ão | /ãw/ | não, são, pão, mão |
| -ãe | /ãj/ | mãe, pães |
| -õe | /õj/ | põe, compõe |
| -em | /ẽj/ | bem, tem, também |
Like Spanish ñ or "ny" in "canyon":
Never pronounce final -m as [m] sound:
| Non-nasal | Meaning | Nasal | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| pau | stick | pão | bread |
| la | there | lã | wool |
| tom | tone | tô | I am |
| vi | I saw | vim | I came |
| seda | silk | senda | path |
