Brazilian Portuguese survival kit

About this kit

Brazilian Portuguese is spoken by more than 200 million people in Brazil. From Sao Paulo to Rio, from Salvador da Bahia to Manaus: with this kit, you have the bare minimum to get by in Brazil and to recognize the Brazilian variant, more sing-song and open than European Portuguese.

Brazilian Portuguese is the native language of more than 200 million people in Brazil, by far the largest Lusophone community in the world. The Brazilian variant differs from the European one in its musicality: open vowels, palatalized "d" and "t" before "i" or final "e" sounding like "dji" and "tchi", guttural "r" at the start of words in several regions, final "s" that does not hiss. This sing-song pronunciation gives Brazilian a reputation for accessibility among French speakers, who often find it easier to understand than European Portuguese. Vocabulary also diverges on daily words: "trem" (train) instead of "comboio", "banheiro" (toilet) instead of "casa de banho", "cafe da manha" (breakfast) instead of "pequeno-almoco", "onibus" (bus) instead of "autocarro". Culturally, Brazil has developed a unique Lusophone identity: music (samba, bossa nova, forro, funk), cuisine (feijoada, acai, churrasco), football, beaches, syncretic religiosity. Relationship with time is more flexible, physical contact more pronounced, and "jeitinho" (the little workaround) permeates daily life. This kit gathers the bare essentials to handle an airport arrival, a taxi ride, a restaurant order, a medical emergency and a smooth departure. You will find indispensable greetings, survival phrases for orientation, key words for eating and sleeping, as well as cultural tips to avoid faux pas. Memorize these expressions before leaving and you will gain confidence from the very first hours on site.