LinguaTwelve letters with their names in Portugal
Portuguese is written with the 26 letters of the Latin alphabet, plus a few accent marks and the ç, which come in lesson 3. What is new is the NAME each letter has in Portugal and its SOUND. Today: A to L, capital and small, each with a word that starts with it – água, bola, casa … One letter is never heard on its own: h. hora (hour) is said “ora”, hotel is said “otel”.
Capital A: two slanted legs that meet at the top, then the bar. Small a: the round part, then a short line down its right side. Capital B: the post, then two bellies, the upper one smaller. Small b: a tall post with one belly at the bottom.
C is one curve, open to the right. Capital D: the post, then one big belly. Small d: the round part first, then the tall post on its right – b turned around.
Capital E: the post, then three bars – top, middle, bottom. Small e: the little bar first, then curl up, over and round to the left. F is an E without its lowest bar. Small f: a hook from the top, then a short bar across.
Capital G: a C, then a short bar turning in. Small g: the round part, then a tail below the line that curls left. Capital H: two posts, then the bar between them. Small h: a tall post and one arch.
Capital I: one straight line. Small i: a short line, then the dot. Capital J: a line down that hooks to the left at the bottom. Small j: a line that drops below the line and curls left, then the dot.
K: the post, then a stroke from the upper right in to the middle, then one from there out to the lower right. Capital L: the post, then the foot to the right. Small l: one tall line with a small turn at the bottom.
| Letter | Name in Portugal | How it sounds | In a word |
|---|---|---|---|
| A a | á | open a when stressed, as in “father”; short elsewhere | água |
| B b | bê | b, as in English | bola |
| C c | cê | k before a, o, u; s before e, i | casa, cidade |
| D d | dê | d – always d, also before i | dado |
| E e | é | open é or closed ê; unstressed almost silent (unit 2) | escola |
| F f | efe | f, as in English | faca |
| G g | gê | g of “go” before a, o, u; like the s of “measure” before e, i | gato, gelo |
| H h | agá | silent on its own | hora |
| I i | i | ee, as in “see” | ilha |
| J j | jota | like the s of “measure” | janela |
| K k | capa | k; only in foreign words and names | kiwi |
| L l | ele | l; dark at the end of a syllable (unit 2) | lua |
A Ana e o gato estão em casa.Ana and the cat are at home.
O gato está na janela.The cat is at the window.
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a água | water | A água está fria. The water is cold. |
| a bola | ball | A bola é da Ana. The ball is Ana’s. |
| a casa | house, home | A casa é pequena. The house is small. |
| o dado | die (dice) | O dado tem seis faces. The die has six faces. |
| a escola | school | A escola fica perto. The school is nearby. |
| a faca | knife | A faca está na gaveta. The knife is in the drawer. |
| o gato | cat | O gato dorme no sofá. The cat sleeps on the sofa. |
| a hora | hour | A aula dura uma hora. The class lasts an hour. |
| a ilha | island | A Madeira é uma ilha. Madeira is an island. |
| a janela | window | Abre a janela, por favor. Open the window, please. |
| o kiwi | kiwi (fruit) | O kiwi é verde por dentro. The kiwi is green inside. |
| a lua | moon | Hoje a lua está cheia. The moon is full today. |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- trace the letter: 3
- fill the gap: 2
- match the pairs: 1
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
Which letter is called “agá” in Portugal?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.