Quick Dictionary

Official language spoken in Brazil is Portuguese

Unlike most of South America, where Spanish is spoken, the official language of Brazil is Portuguese. 

Learning Portuguese

Before you leave for Rio de Janeiro, it might be a good idea to learn to speak some Portuguese words. Your attempts to speak the language while in Rio will be appreciated by the local residents. There are a few simple phrases that will help get you through your Rio vacation.

Important Phrases

“Tudo bem” (Toodoo bain) is a common greeting that means “How’s it going”.

The response is the same “tudo bem”. “Legal”, pronounced “leh-gal” means “cool” and “nossa” means “wow”.

“Bom dia”, “Boa tarde” and “Boa noite” mean “Good Morning”, “Good Afternoon” and “Good Evenning” respectively.

“Como?” means the person you are speaking with did not hear or understand you.

“Desculpe” (Deshculpeh) is the appropriate way to apologize when you have done something wrong. The response to “desculpe” is “Não faz mal” (nah-fash-mal) which means “no problem”.

Being Polite

As a visitor to Rio de Janeiro, it is imperative to have good manners.

The phrase for “excuse me” is "com licença" (co-lee-sensah).

"Obrigado" (men) and "Obrigada" (women) mean, “thank you”.

“De nada” is used to say “you’re welcome” and is pronounced in Brazil as "chee nah-dah".

"Por favor" means "please" and "está bem" means "OK".

Rio Slang

Like any other language, there are some words or phrases that are particular to a region or have several different meanings. Rio also has plenty of these slang phrases.

To say “what’s up”, use the phrase “então? tudo bem?” or the phrase “oi! E, aí?”.

"Gringo" means "foreigner" and can be used as an insult or with a lot of affection.

"Muito louco" indicates you find something "cool" or "funny".

“Koé” or “beleza” both mean “wassup but “beleza” is the more positive word.

"Grana" means "money" and "chapado" means someone is drunk. 

‘Não entendo’ means “I don’t understand” and “não sei” indicates you do not know something.

Learning some Portuguese is recommended for anyone traveling to Rio de Janeiro. At the very least learn a few phrases to let people know you´re familiar with the language. Cariocas are the friendliest people you'll meet, so they will try to understand you the best they can. Middle and upper class people usually speak English very well, and some establishments in Rio, specially around the South Zone, attendants speak English, but don't expect this everywhere you go, there are a lot of restaurants that offer menus in English.