Phrase guide · European Portuguese
43 phrases for greeting people, catching trams and trains, ordering coffee and pastéis de nata, and eating out in Portugal. Every one comes with an easy pronunciation guide for European Portuguese, so you can say it, or point to it.
European Portuguese · Travel phrasesObrigado. / Obrigada.
oh-bree-GAH-doo / oh-bree-GAH-duh
Thank you.
Greetings matter in Portugal. Say bom dia or boa tarde as you walk into a shop or café, and you'll usually get a smile back.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Olá! | oh-LAH | Hello! |
| Bom dia! | bohng DEE-uh | Good morning!Until noon |
| Boa tarde! | BOH-uh TAHRD | Good afternoon!From noon until dark |
| Boa noite! | BOH-uh NOYT | Good evening! / Good night!After dark, to say hello or goodbye |
| Como está? | KOH-moo SHTAH | How are you?Polite. To a friend: Como estás? |
| Adeus! | uh-DEH-oosh | Goodbye!Friends say tchau |
The words you'll use all day. Thank you changes with the speaker: men say obrigado, women say obrigada.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Por favor. | poor fuh-VOHR | Please.You'll also hear se faz favor |
| Obrigado. / Obrigada. | oh-bree-GAH-doo / oh-bree-GAH-duh | Thank you.A man says obrigado, a woman obrigada, whoever they're thanking |
| De nada. | duh NAH-duh | You're welcome. |
| Sim. / Não. | SEENG / NOWNG | Yes. / No. |
| Desculpe. | dush-KOOLP | Excuse me. / Sorry.Polite, to get attention or apologize. To a friend: desculpa |
| Com licença. | kohng lee-SEN-suh | Excuse me.To squeeze past someone |
| Não faz mal. | nowng fahzh MAHL | No problem.Literally “it does no harm.” The usual reply to desculpe |
European Portuguese swallows many of its vowels, so it can sound fast at first, even if you know Spanish. These phrases buy you time.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Fala inglês? | FAH-luh een-GLESH | Do you speak English?Polite. In Portugal, você can sound rude, so people leave it out |
| Não falo português. | nowng FAH-loo poor-too-GESH | I don't speak Portuguese. |
| Não percebi. | nowng pur-suh-BEE | I didn't understand.In Portugal, perceber means to understand. Brazilians say não entendi |
| Pode falar mais devagar? | POHD fuh-LAHR maizh duh-vuh-GAHR | Could you speak more slowly? |
| Pode repetir? | POHD rruh-puh-TEER | Could you say that again? |
Cards work almost everywhere, but some small cafés and bakeries take only cash or set a card minimum.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Quanto custa? | KWAHN-too KOOSH-tuh | How much is it? |
| Só estou a ver. | SOH shtoh uh VEHR | I'm just looking.Brazilians would say só estou olhando |
| Tem isto noutro tamanho? | tayng EESH-too NOH-troo tuh-MUH-nyoo | Do you have this in another size? |
| Vou levar isto. | voh luh-VAHR EESH-too | I'll take this. |
| Posso pagar com cartão? | POH-soo puh-GAHR kohng kur-TOWNG | Can I pay by card? |
| Onde há um multibanco? | OHND AH oong mool-tee-BAHN-koo | Where can I find an ATM?Multibanco machines belong to Portuguese banks. Other cash machines in tourist areas can charge high fees |
In Lisbon, the reusable navegante card works on the metro, buses, trams, ferries and local trains. In Porto, it's the Andante card.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Onde é a casa de banho? | OHND EH uh KAH-zuh duh BUH-nyoo | Where's the restroom?Brazilians say banheiro |
| Onde é a paragem do autocarro? | OHND EH uh puh-RAH-zhayng doo ow-toh-KAH-rroo | Where's the bus stop?Portugal says autocarro and paragem. In Brazil: ônibus and ponto |
| Este elétrico vai para Belém? | ESHT ee-LEH-tree-koo vai PUH-ruh buh-LAYNG | Does this tram go to Belém? |
| A que horas parte o comboio para Sintra? | uh kee OH-rush PAHRT oo kohm-BOY-oo PUH-ruh SEEN-truh | What time does the train to Sintra leave?A train is a comboio in Portugal and a trem in Brazil |
| Um bilhete de ida e volta, por favor. | oong bee-LYET duh EE-duh ee VOHL-tuh, poor fuh-VOHR | A round-trip ticket, please.One way is só ida |
| Para o aeroporto, por favor. | PUH-ruh oo uh-eh-roh-POHR-too, poor fuh-VOHR | To the airport, please. |
| Pode parar aqui? | POHD puh-RAHR uh-KEE | Can you stop here? |
Um café means a short espresso. In restaurants, the bread and olives that arrive before you order aren't free, so send them back if you don't want them.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Faz favor! | fahsh fuh-VOHR | Excuse me!The usual way to call a waiter. It also means please |
| Uma mesa para dois, por favor. | OO-muh MEH-zuh PUH-ruh DOYSH, poor fuh-VOHR | A table for two, please. |
| Queria um café, por favor. | kuh-REE-uh oong kuh-FEH, poor fuh-VOHR | I'd like an espresso, please.Queria, literally “I wanted,” is the polite way to order. In Lisbon, an espresso is also uma bica |
| Um pastel de nata, por favor. | oong puhsh-TEL duh NAH-tuh, poor fuh-VOHR | A custard tart, please.Two are dois pastéis de nata |
| Uma água sem gás, por favor. | OO-muh AH-gwuh sayng GAHSH, poor fuh-VOHR | A still water, please.Sparkling is com gás. Add fresca for cold or natural for room temperature |
| Pode levar o couvert? | POHD luh-VAHR oo koo-VEHR | Could you take the couvert away?The bread, olives and spreads brought before your meal are charged if you eat them |
| O pequeno-almoço está incluído? | oo puh-KEH-noo ahl-MOH-soo SHTAH een-kloo-EE-doo | Is breakfast included?Breakfast is pequeno-almoço in Portugal and café da manhã in Brazil |
| A conta, por favor. | uh KOHN-tuh, poor fuh-VOHR | The check, please. |
Call 112 for the police, an ambulance or the fire department. For health advice that isn't urgent, call SNS 24 at 808 24 24 24.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Socorro! | soo-KOH-rroo | Help! |
| Chame uma ambulância! | SHUHM OO-muh ahm-boo-LAHN-syuh | Call an ambulance! |
| Preciso de um médico. | pruh-SEE-zoo duh oong MEH-dee-koo | I need a doctor. |
| Roubaram-me a carteira. | rroh-BAH-rowng muh uh kur-TAY-ruh | Someone stole my wallet.Literally “they stole me the wallet.” |
A pastelaria is a bakery and café in one, where people stop for a quick coffee and something sweet. This is how a visit sounds in Lisbon.
Prices are in euros, so €2.50 is dois euros e cinquenta.
| Portuguese | Say it like | Number |
|---|---|---|
| um / uma | oong / OO-muh | 1 |
| dois / duas | DOYSH / DOO-ush | 2 |
| três | TRESH | 3 |
| quatro | KWAH-troo | 4 |
| cinco | SEEN-koo | 5 |
| seis | SAYSH | 6 |
| sete | SET | 7 |
| oito | OY-too | 8 |
| nove | NOHV | 9 |
| dez | DESH | 10 |
| vinte | VEENT | 20 |
| cinquenta | seen-KWEN-tuh | 50 |
| cem | SAYNG | 100 |
| mil | MEEL | 1,000 |
| euro / euros | EH-oo-roo / EH-oo-roosh | euro (€) |
Bread, olives, butter or cheese put on the table before you order are the couvert, and you pay for anything you eat. If you don't want it, ask for it to be taken away and it won't be charged. Tap water, água da torneira, is safe to drink, and you can ask for a pitcher of it.
Many Portuguese people understand Spanish, but opening a conversation in it, or assuming they speak it, can come across as rude. Start with English or a simple bom dia.
Lunch is usually between noon and 2 p.m., and some restaurants serve until 3. Dinner starts around 8 p.m., and later on Fridays and Saturdays.
Tips aren't required. Nobody expects one for a coffee, and in restaurants 5 to 10 percent is normal for good service. If the check suggests a tip, you can say no.
Olá (oh-LAH) works any time. It's friendlier to use the greeting for the time of day: bom dia until noon, boa tarde in the afternoon and boa noite after dark.
Men say obrigado (oh-bree-GAH-doo) and women say obrigada (oh-bree-GAH-duh), whoever they're thanking. Add muito for thank you very much. The reply you'll hear is de nada, you're welcome.
Quanto custa? (KWAHN-too KOOSH-tuh) means how much is it? When you're paying at a café counter, Quanto é? asks for the total.
Many do. Portugal ranked sixth in the world in the 2025 EF English Proficiency Index, and in Lisbon, Porto and the Algarve you can get by in English almost everywhere. Outside the cities and with older people, English is less common, and a few Portuguese words help a lot.
It's the same language, but it sounds quite different. In Portugal, unstressed vowels are swallowed and many s sounds become sh. Some everyday words change too: a train is a comboio, a bus is an autocarro, a cell phone is a telemóvel and breakfast is pequeno-almoço. And people in Portugal rarely use você with strangers.
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