This intensive course is for language learners striving toward the B1 level.
My suggestion* for these two weeks is to focus on:
*There's always room to adjust the course according to the group's preferences:
After this course, you'll have come closer to the B1 level and have the tools and strategies to get there and beyond.
Not sure if you should enroll in the A2 or B1 course?
Geared toward Absolute Beginners, this course gives you a solid start and foundation to build upon.
This is an introductory course to the Portuguese language as spoken in Portugal. Throughout the course, we will focus on the Portuguese sound system and basic Portuguese grammar.
You will also learn how to introduce yourself and day-to-day, useful phrases. Finally, we will discuss learning resources and strategies to support your learning journey.
After the course, you will have a basic understanding of European Portuguese pronunciation and grammar. You will also be capable of engaging in simple, short oral interactions. Last but not least, you will be aware of a variety of learning resources and strategies to help you succeed at learning the language.
I will keep you updated on upcoming course seasons
This intensive course is for language learners striving toward the A2 level.
My suggestion* for these two weeks is to focus on:
*There's always room to adjust the course according to the group's preferences:
After this course, you'll have come closer to the A2 level and have the tools and strategies to get there and beyond.
Not sure if you should enroll in the A2 or B1 course?
This intensive course is for language learners striving toward the A1 level.
If you have just started your learning journey, you may find this course too challenging. Consider enrolling for the Clean Slate A0 instead (if available).
This is an all-round course, meaning that we’ll work on all aspects of language learning (at the A1 level):
After this course, you'll have come closer to the A1 level and have the tools and strategies to get there and beyond.
Not sure if you should enroll in the A1 or A2 course?
There are many English-Portuguese false friends (or false cognates if you will). Looking quite similar, these are words that people often assume to have the same meaning. Except that they don’t!
See, there are thousands of English and Portuguese words that share the same Latin root and, as a result, look and sound similar, and mean pretty much the same thing.
In some cases, however, their meanings have gradually grown apart with the passage of time. Nowadays, they look and sound similar, but they mean different things. They’ve become false friends!
Now, words under the label “false friends” don’t necessarily mean totally different things in either language.
In fact, many of these words evolved into different “shades” of the same original meaning. Although used in different contexts, they are still semantically relatable.
Other times, a Portuguese word can have two meanings of which the one with the least currency matches the dominant meaning of the corresponding English cognate (and vice versa). These word pairs are often considered false friends.
Below you have a list of 60 English-Portuguese false friends with simple usage examples.
Reading tips! Be sure, there are plenty of true friends between Portuguese and English as well: English-Portuguese Cognates – Words You Already Know (without Knowing It)
| PORTUGUESE equivalent in English | ENGLISH equivalent in Portuguese | EXAMPLE |
| aliás by the way; moreover | alias pseudónimo | Alías, escusas de voltar aqui. By the way, save yourself the hassle of coming back. |
| adepto supporter; fan | adept apto; ágil | Ele não é grande adepto de futebol. He’s not a great fan of football. |
| amassar knead | amass acumular; açambarcar | Antes de cozer o pão temos de amassar a massa. Before we bake the bread, we must knead the dough. |
| apontamento written note | appointment compromisso; marcação | Tiraste apontamentos durante a aula? Did you write notes during the lecture? |
| argumento reasoning | argument discussão | Ontem tive uma discussão acessa com o Joel. Yesterday, I had a heated argument with Joel. |
| assistir watch a live event | assist ajudar | Vais assistir ao jogo? Are you going to watch the match? |
| atender pick up the phone; receive patients/clients | attend comparecer | Porque nunca atendes quando te ligo? Why don’t you ever answer the phone when I call you? |
| atualmente nowadays; currently | actually na verdade; na realidade | Atualmente estamos sem vagas. Currently, we have no vacancies. |
| balcão counter | balcony varanda | Estou farto de estar aqui ao balcão à espera. I am tired of waiting here at the counter. |
| cavalheiro gentleman | cavalier arrogant; condescendente | Ele é um verdadeiro cavalheiro. He truly is a gentleman. |
| colar necklace | collar colarinho | Ele deu-me este colar no Natal. He gave me this necklace last Christmas. |
| compromisso appointment | compromise ceder; entrar em acordo | Hoje tenho um compromisso às 16h. Today I have an appointment at 4 p.m. |
| confidente confidant | confident confiante | Eu e o Miguel somos bons amigos e confidentes. Miguel and I are good friends and condidants. |
| constipação cold (as in being sick) | constipation prisão de ventre | Há muito tempo que não apanho uma constipação. It’s been a long time since I last caught a cold. |
| convicto certain; confident | convicted condenado | Ela estava convicta de que tinha razão. She was certain she was right. |
| costume custom; tradition; habit; manners | costume traje; vestimenta | Cada país tem os seus costumes e tradições. Every country has its own folklore and traditions. |
| creme egg custard | cream natas | O creme deste bolo é delicioso. The custard in this cake is delicious. |
| data date | data dados | O 10 de Junho é uma data importante em Portugal. The 10th of June is an important date in Portugal. |
| dececionar disappoint | deceive enganar | Não te vou dececionar I am not going to disappoint you. |
| dente tooth | dent amassadela | Tenho dores de dentes. I have a toothache. |
| diversão amusement | diversion distração; desvio | Todos nós precisamos de diversão de vez em quando. We all need to amuse ourselves now and then. |
| editor, editora publisher | editor redator | Ando à procura de uma editora para publicar o meu romance. I am looking for a publisher to publish my novel. |
| educado polite | educated letrado; cultivado | Ela é tão educada! She’s so polite! |
| enrolar wind up | enroll matricular-se; inscrever-se | Enrola este cabo e põe-no no sítio. Wind up this piece of wire and put it away. |
| esperto smart; clever | expert perito | Pensas que és esperto, é? Do you think you are smart, is that it? |
| esquisito weird; strange | exquisite requintado | Está aqui um cheiro esquisito. There’s a funny smell in here. |
| estrangeiro foreign; abroad | stranger estranho | Há muitos estrangeiros a viver em Portugal. There are many foreigners living in Portugal. |
| eventualmente maybe; may | eventually finalmente | Chego eventualmente antes das 21h. I may arrive before 9 p.m. |
| excitado sexually aroused | excited empulgado; entusiasmado | Não posso ver umas saias, fico logo excitado. Anything that moves turns me on. |
| êxito success | exit saída | Infelizmente não tive êxito. Unfortunately, I didn’t succeed. |
| fábrica factory | fabric tecido | Em Portugal há muitas fábricas têxtil. In Portugal, there are many textile factories. |
| facilidade easiness; inclination (talent) | facility lugar; instalação | Ela tem facilidade em tocar piano. She has a natural inclination to play the piano. |
| gentil kind | gentile pagão; infiel | Tu és muito gentil. You’re very kind. |
| gripe flu | grip firmeza; tração | Apanhei uma gripe valente! I caught a nasty dose of flu! |
| ingénuo naive | ingenious criativo; engenhoso | Era tão ingénuo quando tinha 14 anos! I was so naive when I was 14! |
| injúria insult | injury falta; lesão | Não admito qualquer tipo de injúria nesta casa! I don’t allow insults of any kind in this house! |
| jarro jug | jar boião | Pode trazer um jarro com água, por favor? Could you bring us a jug of water, please? |
| jornal newspaper | journal publicação científica | Compraste o jornal? Have you bought the newspaper? |
| lanche snack | lunch almoço | Trouxeste o lanche? Did you bring some snacks with you? |
| legenda(s) subtitles | legend lenda | Devias ver filmes portugueses sem legendas. You should watch Portuguese movies without subtitles. |
| livraria bookstore | library biblioteca | Passas-te pela livraria? Did you drop by the bookstore? |
| novela soap opera | novel romance | Não suporto novelas. I can’t stand soap operas. |
| notícia news | notice notar; perceber | Tens notícias? Do you have news? |
| ofício profession; occupation | office escritório | Qual é o teu ofício? What do you do for a living? |
| parentes relatives | parents pais | Tenho muitos parentes no Brasil. I have many relatives in Brazil. |
| particular private; personal | particular particular; específico | Estes assuntos são particulares. These are private matters. |
| pasta briefcase | pasta massa | Viste a minha pasta? Have you seen my briefcase? |
| prejudicar cause harm; disfavor | prejudice preconceito | Não gosto de prejudicar ninguém. I don’t like to cause harm to anyone. |
| preservativo condom | preservative conservante | Os preservativos são normalmente feitos de látex. Condoms are normally made of latex. |
| pretender intend | pretend fingir; fazer de conta | Ele pretende casar comigo. He intends to marry me. |
| puxar pull | push empurrar | Tens de puxar para abrir a porta. You must pull to open the door. |
| queque muffin | cake bolo | Comi um queque de cenoura. I ate a carrot muffin. |
| recordar remember | record gravar | Recordas-te de mim? Do you remember me? |
| refrigerante soda, refrigerant | refrigerant refrigerante | Tomas um refrigerante? Would you like a soda? |
| resumir summarize | resume continuar | Podes resumir a história em menos de 150 palavras? Can you summarize the story in fewer than 150 words? |
| retirar withdraw | retire reformar; aposentar | O tribunal retirou-me o direito à casa. The court withdrew my right to the house. |
| romance novel; also romance | romance romance; românicas (languages) | Que romance estás a ler agora? Which novel are you reading now? |
| sensível sensitive | sensible sensato | Ela é uma pessoa sensível. She is a sensitive person. |
| taxa rate; fee | tax imposto | A taxa de desemprego anda baixa. The unemployment rate has been low. |
| transpiração perspiration | transpiration transpiração vegetal | A transpiração permite ao nosso corpo regular a sua temperatura. Perspiration enables our bodies to self-regulate their temperature. |
Reading tips! The following is also a list, though one of a different kind: 38 Quick Tips to Improve Your Portuguese.
Break Free from the Tyranny of the Present Tense
Stay tuned for upcoming online courses and other learning materials.