30 Essential Brazilian Portuguese Phrases for Your First Trip to Rio de Janeiro

Fine with anyone. Among Brazilians the everyday hello is oi, and bom dia (phrase 19) greets by the time of day.

Tchau is the everyday casual goodbye; até amanhã is see you tomorrow.

A man says obrigado and a woman obrigada, whoever is being thanked. Muito obrigado is thank you very much.

Onde fica o banheiro? asks for the toilet. The nh is said like the ny in canyon.

The final m only makes the vowel nasal. Brazilians often answer yes by repeating the verb instead: Você entende? Entendo.

Said through the nose, close to English town without the t. It is also "not" before a verb: não entendo, I don't understand.

The short call for urgent help. In Brazil, dial 192 for an ambulance and 190 for the police.

Add it to any request: água, por favor, water, please. In Rio the final r is soft, often close to an h.

An apology for a small mishap; desculpe is a little more formal. For sympathy with bad news, say sinto muito.

Said to get past someone or before interrupting. Before a question, desculpe also works: desculpe, onde fica o banheiro?

Onde fica...? asks where a place is: onde fica o metrô? Portuguese uses only a closing question mark.

The verb to understand. Não entendo is I don't understand; não entendi, I didn't catch that, is the one to use right after someone speaks.

Mais devagar, por favor asks for a slower pace, in speech or at the wheel.

The everyday reply to obrigado. Imagina, think nothing of it, is a friendly informal one.

Quanto custa? or quanto é? asks the price. Prices are in reais, written R$.

A conta, por favor asks for the bill. Many restaurants add a 10% service charge, serviço, which is optional.

Tem uma farmácia aqui perto? asks for one nearby. Signs may also say drogaria.

Feminine: a água. For still water ask for sem gás; for sparkling, com gás.

Used until about noon; boa tarde is for the afternoon and boa noite for the evening. Say it to the driver or the shop assistant before anything else.

Tenho alergia a... names what you react to: tenho alergia a amendoim, I'm allergic to peanuts. The g before i sounds like the s in measure.

Posso pagar com cartão? asks to pay by card. The answer may be a question: crédito ou débito?, credit or debit?

Uma mesa para dois is a table for two; swap dois for três or quatro as needed. In speech para is often shortened to pra.

Onde fica o metrô? asks for the metro, with fica, the usual verb for where a place is. A station is an estação.

A ticket for a bus, train or plane: uma passagem, por favor. For two, say duas passagens.

The verb to help. In pode me ajudar?, me before the verb is normal in Brazilian speech.

Poderia falar de novo? asks for a repeat. Add mais devagar, more slowly, with devagar from phrase 13.

The verb to stop. Pare aqui, por favor is for a taxi or ride-share driver; pode parar aqui? is softer.

Chame uma ambulância! is said to one person; to a group, chamem. The ambulance number is 192.

The everyday word for tasty food: está gostoso! The ending follows the dish: a comida está gostosa. In speech está is often just tá.

Spicy-hot: eu queria bem apimentado, with bem for very. Brazilian food is usually mild, and hot sauce, pimenta, often comes on the side.