I can read aloud an unfamiliar Portuguese word with s, z, x, ç, lh, nh, ch, gu, qu, and the two r's without English habits (a spoken h, ch as in “church”), and correctly write the letters the checker tells apart: rr, ss, lh, nh, ch.
One letter s, four sounds — and x
The sound depends on where the letter is
The letter s is read by its place in the word. At the start of a word and after a consonant it's [s], s in “see” (sim); between vowels, [z], z in “zoo” (a casa, a mesa); at the end of a syllable or word, [ʃ], sh in “shoe” (o país, os países); before a voiced consonant, [ʒ], s in “vision”.
Double ss is always [s]: a pessoa. Here a mistake shows in writing: the checker forgives a missing accent mark, but it sees s versus ss. The letter z works the same way: [z] between vowels, [ʃ] at the end of a word (o rapaz, “young man”).
Before a vowel in the next word, a final s is [z]: os amigos (“friends”), like the s of English “is it”.
The letter x has four readings, and that's the full list: [ʃ] in o peixe; [z] in o exame; [ks] in o táxi (“taxi”); [s] in próximo (“next”). Learn each word with x together with its sound.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “KAH-sah” — s between vowels is [z]: a casa.
• NOT “pah-EES” with an s at the end — o país ends in [ʃ], as in “shoe”.
• NOT “ek-SAH-may” — in o exame the x is [z].
• NOT “peh-ZOH-ah” — a pessoa has a double s, and it's a plain [s].
One letter s, four sounds — and x
Where the letter stands in the word decides how it sounds.
| Written form | Sound | Word | NOT like this |
|---|---|---|---|
| s at the start | [s], s in “see” | sim | — |
| s between vowels | [z], z in “zoo” | a casa | not “KAH-sah” |
| s at the end | [ʃ], sh in “shoe” | o país | not “pah-EES” |
| ss | [s], s in “see” | a pessoa | not “peh-ZOH-ah” |
| x | [ʃ], sh in “shoe” | o peixe | not “PAYKS” |
| x | [z], z in “zoo” | o exame | not “ek-SAH-may” |
| x | [ks], x in “box” | o táxi (taxi) | not “TAH-shee” |
| x | [s], s in “see” | próximo (next) | not “PROK-see-moh” |
Lesson notes
The sound depends on where the letter is
The letter s is read by its place in the word. At the start of a word and after a consonant it's [s], s in “see” (sim); between vowels, [z], z in “zoo” (a casa, a mesa); at the end of a syllable or word, [ʃ], sh in “shoe” (o país, os países); before a voiced consonant, [ʒ], s in “vision”.
Double ss is always [s]: a pessoa. Here a mistake shows in writing: the checker forgives a missing accent mark, but it sees s versus ss. The letter z works the same way: [z] between vowels, [ʃ] at the end of a word (o rapaz, “young man”).
Before a vowel in the next word, a final s is [z]: os amigos (“friends”), like the s of English “is it”.
The letter x has four readings, and that's the full list: [ʃ] in o peixe; [z] in o exame; [ks] in o táxi (“taxi”); [s] in próximo (“next”). Learn each word with x together with its sound.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “KAH-sah” — s between vowels is [z]: a casa.
• NOT “pah-EES” with an s at the end — o país ends in [ʃ], as in “shoe”.
• NOT “ek-SAH-may” — in o exame the x is [z].
• NOT “peh-ZOH-ah” — a pessoa has a double s, and it's a plain [s].
ç, g, j, qu, gu, lh, nh, ch, and silent h
The letter ç is [s], s in “see”, before a, o, u: a criança, o açúcar. Without the cedilla, c in those places would be [k]. Before e and i, plain c is already [s], so no cedilla is needed there.
The letter g is [ʒ], s in “vision”, before e and i, and the g of “go” before a, o, u. The letter j is always [ʒ], never the j of “jam”.
The letter u after g and q, before e and i, is silent and only keeps the sound hard: o queijo (“cheese”), a guitarra (“guitar”). In qua, though, you hear the u: [kw], as in “queen”.
The pair lh is one sound [ʎ], like lli in “million”, not l + h: o trabalho, a folha. nh is one sound too, [ɲ], like ny in “canyon”: o dinheiro, o vinho. ch is [ʃ], sh in “shoe”, never the ch of “church”: a chave, o chá. The checker tells all three pairs apart: write “folia” or “vinio”, and the answer is marked wrong.
The letter h is never pronounced, not even as a breath: o hotel, o homem (“man”). Its job is only in writing.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “kree-AHN-kah” — ç is [s]: a criança.
• NOT “trah-BAL-hoh” — lh is one sound: o trabalho.
• NOT “din-HAY-roh” — nh is one sound: o dinheiro.
• NOT “CHAH-vay” — ch is [ʃ], as in “shoe”: a chave.
• NOT “KWAY-joh” — after q, before e, the u is silent: o queijo.
Where the checker sees your mistake
Two kinds of r, two different sounds. rr, and r at the start of a word, are the throaty r [ʁ]: o carro, a rua. A single r anywhere else is one quick tap [ɾ], like tt in American “butter”: caro (“expensive”), a porta, o açúcar, a criança. Neither is the English r.
These are different words: o carro means “car”, caro means “expensive”. The checker sees the double letter, so write both r's.
A final l is dark [ɫ], like the l of “ball”: o papel, o hotel, Portugal. Just never turn it into a w.
d, t, and n stay plain before i and e (o dinheiro, o telefone), not the Brazilian “j” and “ch” of dia, tia. b and v are two different sounds, as in English: o vinho, o banco (“bank”).
The hyphen in chamo-me (“my name is”) attaches the short word to the verb before it: one word in two parts. The construction itself comes in module 1.
A question is asked with the voice: it goes up at the end. Unlike English, the word order doesn't change, and there's no do.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “caro” meaning “car” — “car” is o carro, with two r's.
• NOT “pah-PEW” — in o papel the final l is dark, as in “ball”, never a w.
• NOT “jeen-YAY-roo” — d before i stays plain: o dinheiro.
• NOT “BEE-nyoo” — o vinho starts with v, and it sounds like v.