LinguaFourteen more letters – and now every word is possible
Today: M to Z. With these fourteen letters you have the whole alphabet, and words like macaco (monkey), tatu (armadillo) and abacaxi (pineapple) are yours. Three letters are guests: k, w and y appear only in foreign words and names – kiwi, show, yoga. Brazilians love them in first names, though: you will meet a Kelly, a Wellington and a Yasmin sooner or later. q never comes alone: it is always qu – parque, queijo.
Capital M: two posts joined by a V that hangs from their tops. Small m: a short post, then two arches side by side. Capital N: up, diagonally down, up again. Small n: a short post and one arch.
O: one oval, started at the top and drawn round to the left. Capital P: the post, then one belly at the top. Small p: a post that goes below the line, then a belly on the right.
Capital Q: an O with a short tail across its lower right. Small q: the round part, then a post on its right that drops below the line. Capital R: a P, then a leg down to the right. Small r: a short post and a little arch that stops in the air.
S: one stroke – start at the upper right, curve left, cross the middle and curve back to the lower left. Capital T: the roof first, then the post down from its middle. Small t: a post with a little turn at the bottom, then the short bar across.
Capital U: down, round the bottom and up again, in one stroke. Small u: down, round and up, then a short post on the right. V: two strokes that meet at the bottom.
W: four strokes, down-up-down-up, like two V’s side by side. X: two crossing diagonals – the one from the upper left first.
Capital Y: two short arms that meet in the middle, then the post down. Small y: a short stroke down to the right, then a long one from the upper right to below the line. Z: the top bar, the diagonal back to the lower left, the bottom bar.
| Letter | Portuguese name | How it sounds | In a word |
|---|---|---|---|
| M m | eme | m; after a vowel at the end of a word it only makes the vowel nasal (next unit) | macaco |
| N n | ene | n, as in English | navio |
| O o | ó | open ó or closed ô | olho |
| P p | pê | p, without a puff of air | pato |
| Q q | quê | k; always written qu | parque |
| R r | erre | at the start of a word like the h of “hat”; between vowels a quick tap | rua |
| S s | esse | s; between vowels like z | sol |
| T t | tê | t; before an i sound often “tch” (next unit) | tatu |
| U u | u | oo, as in “food” | uva |
| V v | vê | v, as in English | vaca |
| W w | dáblio | w or v; only in foreign words and names | kiwi |
| X x | xis | usually sh (it has four sounds – end of the next unit) | abacaxi |
| Y y | ípsilon | i; only in foreign words and names | Yasmin |
| Z z | zê | z, as in “zoo” | zero |
O macaco come abacaxi.The monkey eats pineapple.
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| o macaco | monkey | O macaco sobe na árvore. The monkey climbs the tree. |
| o navio | ship | O navio chega ao porto de Santos. The ship arrives at the port of Santos. |
| o olho | eye | A menina tem olhos castanhos. The girl has brown eyes. |
| o pato | duck | O pato nada no lago. The duck swims in the lake. |
| o parque | park | Vamos ao parque no domingo? Shall we go to the park on Sunday? |
| a rua | street | Eu moro nesta rua. I live on this street. |
| o sol | sun | Hoje tem muito sol. It is very sunny today. |
| o tatu | armadillo | O tatu vive no cerrado. The armadillo lives in the cerrado. |
| a uva | grape | Eu gosto de uva verde. I like green grapes. |
| a vaca | cow | A vaca está no campo. The cow is in the field. |
| o kiwi | kiwi (fruit) | O kiwi é verde por dentro. The kiwi is green inside. |
| o abacaxi | pineapple | O suco de abacaxi está gelado. The pineapple juice is cold. |
| o zero | zero | O número do quarto começa com zero. The room number starts with zero. |
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 always comes right after q in Portuguese?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.