Obvious, But Invisible

Native speakers of Portuguese, like any other, speak and do not think about many rules and interesting details. In fact, there are many rules, but not everyone pays attention to it. And we, by virtue of our profession as teachers, see them all, know them and are ready to share them with you.

Stressed syllable

A very convenient rule, which is only mentioned in passing, governs the rules for placing stress in words. If in other languages ​​the stress can be on any syllable, then in Portuguese this is clearly regulated. Namely, in words that end in the letters “-r, –l, –z”, the stressed syllable is always the last one:
Portugal (Portugal), estudar (to study), rapaz (boy)

From this we can conclude that all verbs have the last stressed syllable, since they always end with the letter “-r”.

The second rule is also very logical. If there is a sign above the letter, then this letter will always be stressed:
possível (maybe), trânsito (traffic jam), comissão (commission)

The third rule applies absolutely to all remaining words. If the word has no signs above the letters and does not end with the above consonants, the stress is always placed on the penultimate syllable:
mensagem (message), beleza (beauty), pipoca (popcorn)

Thus, you can not only correctly stress verbally, but also, knowing where to put the stress, understand that there is not enough sign above the stressed letter, add it and write the word correctly.

Diacritics

Since we have found out that letters that have a sign are stressed, we will learn a couple more rules related to this. First, let’s find out what they are called in general and in particular. First, the common name for signs is diacritics. Secondly, consider each of the signs using the example of the letter “a”:

• á – acento agudo
• à – acento grave
• â – acento circunflexo
• ã – til

So, the very rule of setting diacritics sounds like this: a sign over a vowel is always placed in single-syllable words. For example, já (already), mês (month), rã (frog), pó (dust).

But “acento grave” is always the result of the combination of the preposition “a” and the feminine definite article “a”: Vou a + a Itália = Vou à Itália.

The fact that there should be a sign above the stressed letter, we learned. However, how do you know what kind of sign? There is no answer to this question. In the process of learning the Portuguese language, you will simply memorize the basic words and their signs.

C cedilha

Let’s continue the theme of interesting icons and talk about the letter “ç” (c cedilha), which appears instead of the letter “c“. In what cases is it set? We know that the letter “c” reads like [s] when it comes before the vowels “e” and “i”: perceber (to understand), círculo (circle). Before other vowels such as “a, o, u”, it reads like [k]: máscara (mask), coruja (owl), maracujá (passion fruit).

Last vowel

Surely many of you have already noticed that Portuguese words are read exactly the same as they are written. This greatly simplifies the study of the language and distinguishes it from the rest. However, fluent speech left its mark and the Portuguese began to “swallow” the last vowel. “Swallow” means not to say it at all. For example, “desculpa” (sorry) sounds like “desculp” and “boa tarde” (good afternoon) – like “boa tard”.

Of course, there are situations where the last vowel is important. That is, at the end of the verb, you can understand who or what it is about. For example, “faça” or “coma” indicate that someone is being referred to in the third person. In this case, the ending is pronounced clearly.

Letter “s”

This letter has three reading options – [c], [ʃ] and [z]. Like the letter [ʃ], it is read when it is the last in a word or before the consonants “c, p, t”: escola (school), especialista (specialist).

The letter “s” has its natural sound from the alphabet at the beginning of the word, before the rest of the consonants and in the case when the letter “s” is double: século (century), interessante (interesting).

But if the letter “s” is between vowels, then it is read as “z”: casa (house), portuguesa (Portuguese).

Letter “r”

With the letter “r” is also not so simple. It must be remembered that if the word begins with this letter, then it becomes uvular, that is, it is pronounced when the far part of the tongue is pressed against the palate.

The same thing happens when the letter is the same as “rr“: rádio (radio), terra (earth).
In all other cases, the tongue is pressed against the palate with its tip and sounds quite normal.

Double letters

Since we have already seen the double letters “ss” and “rr” with you, it is important to say that no other letters in the Portuguese language are doubled. No more doubt!

Letter “h”

At the end of this article, we recall that the letter “h” at the beginning of the word is not read at all: homem (man), herança (inheritance).

Moreover, you will not meet it between vowels, another consonant will always go with it. And, if the letter “h” is after the consonant, then it softens it: milho (corn), amanhã (tomorrow). And in combination with the letter “c”, they together read like [ʃ]: chá (tea), bolacha (cookie).

Conclusion

Usually we are used to the fact that the rules oblige us to change the form of a word, replace the ending, build logical chains. But rules exist even for letters and their combinations. It doesn’t take much effort to remember them. Most of the rules with experience will become an automatic reaction. However, it will be helpful to take a look at these rules once.

Among other things, today you have replenished your stock not only of words in Portuguese, but also of special terms. Now you can show off your knowledge.