Unit 18 of 20A25 lessons · 40 words
People and feelings in European Portuguese
Pessoas e sentimentos
Describe what people look like and what they are like, talk about feelings, and choose between ser and estar, saber and conhecer. This is an A2 unit of the Bica course, in the Portuguese spoken in Portugal: below are all its words, example sentences you can listen to, and the grammar notes.
Words and phrases
| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
o cabelo | hairUsually singular, with the article: Ela tem o cabelo comprido. |
louroalso loura, loiro, loira | blondLouro and loiro are both correct. |
compridoalso comprida | longFor hair, clothes and queues: o cabelo comprido. |
curtoalso curta | short (length)For length: cabelo curto. A short person is baixo. |
magroalso magra | thin |
os óculos | glassesAlways plural: Os meus óculos estão aqui. |
a barba | beardTer barba or usar barba = to have a beard. |
usar | to wearUsar óculos = to wear glasses. It also means "to use". |
| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
antipáticoalso antipática | unfriendlyThe opposite of simpático. |
tímidoalso tímida | shy |
divertidoalso divertida | funFor people and things: A festa foi divertida. |
trabalhadoralso trabalhadora | hard-working |
preguiçosoalso preguiçosa | lazy |
inteligente | cleverThe same for men and women. |
chatoalso chata | annoyingVery common: Que chato! = How annoying! What a pain! |
o feitio | temperTer bom feitio = to be easy-going. Ter mau feitio = to be bad-tempered. |
| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
contente | happyThe same for men and women: Estou contente. |
triste | sad |
nervosoalso nervosa | nervous |
chateadoalso chateada | upsetVery common in Portugal: Estás chateado comigo? = Are you upset with me? |
preocupadoalso preocupada | worried |
ter saudadesalso estar com saudades | to missTer saudades de + a person or a place. Eu tenho saudades tuas. = I miss you. |
sozinhoalso sozinha | alone |
zangadoalso zangada | angry |
| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
ficar | to getWith a feeling, ficar means to get or become: ficar contente, ficar chateado. |
ficou | he/she gotPast of ficar: fiquei, ficaste, ficou, ficámos, ficaram. |
a notícia | newsOne piece of news. As notícias = the news on TV. |
a prenda | presentThe usual word in Portugal for a present. |
surpreendidoalso surpreendida | surprised |
assustadoalso assustada | scared |
envergonhadoalso envergonhada | embarrassed |
o medo | fearTer medo de = to be afraid of. Ficar com medo = to get scared. |
| Portuguese | English |
|---|---|
saber | to knowFor facts and skills: sei, sabes, sabe. Sabes nadar? = Can you swim? |
conheço | I know (people, places)From conhecer, for people and places: Eu conheço o Pedro. |
parecer | to seemPareces cansado. = You look tired. |
parece que | it seems that |
o vizinhoalso a vizinha | neighbourOs vizinhos do lado = the next-door neighbours. Os vizinhos de cima = the neighbours upstairs. |
de vista | by sightEu conheço-o de vista. = I know him by sight. |
ninguém | nobodyWith não: Não conheço ninguém. = I don't know anybody. |
a resposta | answer |
Example sentences
- O Pedro é alto e magro.Pedro is tall and thin.
- A Ana tem o cabelo comprido.Ana has long hair.Hair usually takes the article: tem o cabelo comprido.
- O meu irmão tem barba.My brother has a beard.No article: ter barba. People also say usar barba.
- A minha chefe é muito simpática.My boss is very nice.
- O meu irmão é tímido, mas é muito divertido.My brother is shy, but he's very funny.
- Eles são muito trabalhadores.They're very hard-working.
- Eu estou muito contente.I'm very happy.Contente (happy, glad) is the same for men and women.
- Porque é que tu estás triste?Why are you sad?
- Ela está nervosa por causa do exame.She's nervous because of the exam.Por causa de = because of: por causa do exame.
- Eu fiquei muito contente com a notícia.I was very happy about the news.Ficar + a feeling = to get, to become. English often just says "was".
- O Pedro ficou chateado comigo.Pedro got upset with me.Ficou = he got, he became.
- Nós ficámos muito contentes com a prenda.We were very happy with the present.Ficámos (we got) has an accent in Portugal.
- Eu sei nadar, mas não sei dançar.I can swim, but I can't dance.Saber + infinitive = to know how to, "can" for a skill.
- Tu conheces o Pedro?Do you know Pedro?Conhecer is for people and places.
- Eu conheço-o de vista.I know him by sight.O = him. It goes after the verb, with a hyphen: conheço-o.
Every lesson page has all of its sentences: What do they look like? · What are they like? · How are you feeling? · Getting upset, getting happy · Knowing and seeming
Unit notes
Ser or estar?
With people, ser says what someone is like: looks, personality, nationality or job. O Pedro é alto. A Ana é simpática.
Estar says how someone is right now: feelings, moods and states that can change. Eu estou cansado. Ela está nervosa.
Some words work with both, with a different meaning: Ele é triste (he is a sad person), but Ele está triste (he is sad today). Tu estás mais magro! is a compliment: you have lost weight.
- O Pedro é muito simpático.Pedro is very nice.
- Hoje o Pedro está triste.Pedro is sad today.
- Tu estás mais magro!You look thinner!
Describing looks: ter and usar
Hair and eyes go with ter, and hair usually takes the article: Ela tem o cabelo comprido. Ele tem olhos azuis. A beard takes no article: O Rui tem barba.
For glasses and beards you can also use usar (to wear): A minha mãe usa óculos. O meu pai usa barba.
Adjectives go after the noun and agree with it: o cabelo louro, uma rapariga loura. And a pessoa is always feminine, even for a man: O Rui é uma pessoa simpática.
- A Ana tem o cabelo comprido.Ana has long hair.
- A minha mãe usa óculos.My mother wears glasses.
- O Rui é uma pessoa muito simpática.Rui is a very nice person.
Saber or conhecer?
Both mean "to know". Saber is for facts and information: Eu sei a resposta. Sabes onde fica a estação? With an infinitive, it means "to know how to", that is, "can" for a skill: Eu sei nadar.
Conhecer is for people and places: knowing them, having been there, or meeting someone for the first time. Eu conheço o Pedro. Conheces o Porto?
The forms: sei, sabes, sabe, sabemos, sabem and conheço, conheces, conhece, conhecemos, conhecem.
- Eu sei nadar.I can swim.
- Eu conheço o Pedro.I know Pedro.
- Tu sabes onde ele mora?Do you know where he lives?
Ficar: to get, to become
You already know ficar as "to stay" and in onde fica. With a feeling or a state, it means "to get" or "to become": Eu fiquei contente. ("I was happy", because something made me happy.) Ele ficou chateado. ("He got upset.")
It is most common in the past: fiquei, ficaste, ficou, ficámos, ficaram. In the present, it says what usually happens: Eu fico nervoso antes dos exames. Fear works the same way: ficar com medo = to get scared.
- Nós ficámos muito contentes.We were very happy.
- O Pedro ficou chateado comigo.Pedro got upset with me.
- Eu fico nervoso antes dos exames.I get nervous before exams.
Saudade
Saudade is the Portuguese word for missing someone or something: a sweet, sad longing for people, places or times you love. It is at the heart of fado, the traditional music of Lisbon and Coimbra.
In everyday speech, use the plural with ter: Eu tenho saudades tuas ("I miss you"), Eu tenho saudades de Portugal ("I miss Portugal"). You can also say Estou com saudades.
- Eu tenho saudades tuas.I miss you.
- A minha mãe tem saudades do Algarve.My mother misses the Algarve.