Portuguese pronunciation guide
How to pronounce the Portuguese nasal vowels
Portuguese has five nasal vowels and several nasal diphthongs, including the famous -ão in não and pão. They are spelled with a tilde (ã, õ) or with an m or n after the vowel (sim, som, mundo), and in every case the air goes out through the nose with no full n at the end. Tono scores Portuguese against the European model; the nasal sounds below are shared by Portugal and Brazil.
-
ã, an, am
An open “uh” said through the nose.
lã, irmã, canto, campo
-
-ão
Start with a nasal “uh” and glide towards a rounded, nasal “w”. The lips round at the end.
não, pão, mão, coração
-
-ãe and -õe
A nasal vowel gliding towards a nasal “y”.
mãe, pães, põe, lições
-
im, om, um
The vowel is nasal and the m or n is not said as a separate sound.
sim, som, mundo, um
How to make the sounds
- Say the plain vowel first, then let part of the air go out through your nose. Pinch your nose lightly: you should feel it buzz.
- Do not close your mouth or touch the roof of it at the end: sim is not “seem”, som is not “some”.
- For -ão, start with a nasal “uh” and round your lips into a nasal “w” as the sound ends: não, pão.
- For -ãe and -õe, glide to a nasal “y” instead: mãe, põe.
When a vowel follows, the m or n is a normal consonant again: in cama and ano you hear a real m and a real n.
Minimal pairs
In each pair, nasality alone changes the word.
- mão mau hand · bad
- pão pau bread · stick
- lã lá wool · there
- vim vi I came · I saw
- som só sound · alone
- mundo mudo world · mute
Practice with real sentences
Tap Practice to open the sentence in Tono, listen to it, and say it.
- Não, obrigado. No, thank you.Practice
- A minha mãe faz pão todos os dias. My mother makes bread every day.Practice
- Ele tem um cão e dois irmãos. He has a dog and two brothers.Practice
- Onde fica a estação? Where is the station?Practice
- Eles são muito simpáticos. They are very nice.Practice
- Vamos ao cinema amanhã? Shall we go to the cinema tomorrow?Practice
- Tenho as mãos frias. My hands are cold.Practice
- Bom dia, tudo bem? Good morning, how are you?Practice
Common mistakes
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Saying the N
Speakers of English and Spanish often close the nasal vowel with a real n, so não comes out as “nown”. The tongue should never touch the roof of the mouth.
-
-ão said as “ow”
Without the nasality, não sounds like English “now” and pão like “pow”. Keep the air in your nose from start to finish.