Hello, dear students! This is Virginia.
In this lesson, you will learn how to pronounce words using the correct stressed syllable.
I have prepared a PDF with exercises for you to practice what you learn in this lesson.
Fill out the form below to download your Free PDF and test your knowledge of word stress in Portuguese.
In this lesson, I’m going to teach you 3 tips that will help you identify the stressed syllable of words in Portuguese.
Why is this important?
If you put the stress in the wrong place when pronouncing words, it will sound strange, and people might not understand. That’s why pronouncing words with the right stressed syllable is very important for good communication.
Tip number 1:
Almost all words in the Portuguese language have the stress on the second to last syllable. These words are called “paroxítonas” (paroxytones). For example:
Gato (cat)
Cachorro (dog)
Amigo (friend)
Rapidamente (quickly)
💡 So, if you aren’t sure about which syllable is stressed for a word in Portuguese, there’s a big chance that it’s a paroxytone, in other words, that the stressed syllable will be the second to last.
Tip number 2:
If the word has a graphic accent or sign, that syllable will be the strongest one. For example:
Dúvida (doubt)
Ônibus (bus)
Coração (heart)
Português (Portuguese)
If a word has a tilde (˜) and another graphic accent, the syllable with the other accent will be the strongest one. For example:
Órfão (orphan)
Órgão (organ)
Sótão (attic)
Tip number 3:
Words ending with the letters r, l, z, x, i, u, im, um, and om have the stress on the last syllable. These words are called oxytones. For example:
For the letter -r: falar (to speak), estudar (to study), fazer (to do), assistir (to watch)
For the letter -l: gentil (kind), papel (paper), Brasil (Brazil)
For the letter -z: feliz (happy), talvez (maybe), rapaz (young man)
For the letter -x: xerox, duplex, unissex
For the letter -i: comi (I ate), bebi (I drank), assisti (I watched)
For the letter -u: menu, xampu (shampoo), tabu (taboo)
For the letters -im: assim (like this), ruim (bad), enfim (anyway)
For the letters -um: algum (some), comum (common), nenhum (none)
For the letters -om: marrom (brown), cupom (coupon), batom (lipstick)
But remember: most words in Portuguese have the stressed syllable on the second to last syllable.
Watch the video to hear the pronunciation of each word. I recommend that you practice repeating all the words out loud to improve your pronunciation.
Download the PDF with exercises to practice your knowledge of word stress in Portuguese.
See you next time! Bye, bye!
