Ukkram

Off the subject. I thought "nada" was Russian for "nothing" but I have been hearing that word often when I thank someone. Does it mean "no problem" or am I hearing it incorrectly?

Red Eric

Spot on.

De nada is what it should be but often pronounced naaaaaaaada

For nothing, it's nothing, no problem etc.

Ukkram

Thanks and this is how we learn.

macliam

Nothing in Russian is ничего(nichego), nada is Portuguese and Spanish for nothing and "de nada" is the response to thanks (that's OK, no problem, etc.) It's an important response to "crack the ice"......

Maybe we should have a Portuguese language thread......

e.g. Obrigado - in Ireland we often say "I'm obliged", same thing, change of letter from L to R (common change in Portuguese, Praça (Plaza), Praia (Playa), etc.). Since it's taling about you yourself, it makes more sense that it's obrigado for a man and obrigada for a woman.

Then Brits feel comfotable saying "Por favor" for please because it's like Spanish..... but "se faz favor" (suh fash favOr) is more Portuguese... either is better than saying nothing!

"Desculpe" (deshcUlpah) is "sorry" - but not used in the English way when passing someone - that's "com liçença" (leessEnssa) or "excuse me".

A few simple phrases make all the difference!

Knoxy_UK

Tudo bem?

I understand is "all good" (you ok?) and can be used as the reply too

Am I right Mac?

carvoeiro

three phrases i hear a lot are

Não faz mal - often used - means it doesn't matter - the usual reply to desculpe

Claro - means - of course - or just a general agreement

Não percebo - percebo - doesn't understand - understands - used far more commonly than compreendo
when you try to have a conversation especially when you begin you'll hear this all of the time - its a kindness to you to test what you understand

macliam

More likely to be "está bem" (schta bine) or "it's OK" than tudo bem in Portugal, I would think ......but there are always regional variations. One reply I've heard rarely is "Não tem de quê!" (Nown ten de kay) for "You're welcome" or "Not at all", but "de nada" is the norm (it's shorter!)

macliam

Perceber and comprender and entender have subtly different meanings..... but all mean "understand". I've had it explained that "Compreender" suggests a deeper understanding (comprehension), perceber suggests you've "picked it up" (perceive) and entender (the most common) is to understand what someone is saying. Most Portuguese would say "Não entendo" rather than "Não compreendo" or "Não percebo".

However, on the internet, most forums discussing language are hijacked by Brazilians who seem incapable of understanding that they speak a dialect that is about as close to European Portuguese as Texan is to British English. With Brazilian soaps on the TV and films dubbed into Brazilian Portuguese, most European Portuguese understand Brazilian, but not the other way around....

zoff

Great thread! Portugese is my first language but I haven't spoken it much in the last 50 years. Thanks to os estrangeiros on this site I'm learning more about my language!

AliceCaroline

Obviously varies from area to area.
I've heard tudo bem a lot in the Algarve.
When you are eating your meal you'll be asked "Tudo bem?" to enquire if everything is good.
And the locals reply with "Tudo bem" as a statement that everything is on fact good.

Red Eric

Up here, the response is simply TUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUdo!

Sometimes with a swear-word after it - the lingo's a bit fruity in these parts

macliam

No, no, I was commenting specifically on "tudo bem" as a response to obrigado. It's used everywhere to ask if all's Ok and even as shorthand to ask how you are.... "Tudo bem?"

I live in the Alentejo, my wife is from Lisbon and her father lived in the north (Agueda) - I've been to every region of Portugal over the last 27 years and the surprise is how little the basic language changes (unless you're discussing the life stages of the azinheira down here )

carvoeiro

i also find it changes based on speaking to the young or old - sadly making it even harder for us poor expats - especially today a bank holiday when a few people started on the aguadente early

AliceCaroline

While this thread is on the subject of language; what is the politest way of asking someone on the phone if they can speak in english?
If someone calls me then it's easy enough to say "Não falo Português" but if I call them, and they obviously start to talk to me in portuguese, what is the best way to own up to not understanding their language?
Would "Pode falar inglês por favor" be ok?

(I am already having lessons before people suggest I do)

macliam

Good to hear you're trying to learn - but don't get hung up on grammar, etc. and getting things "perfect". Speaking well enough to take part in the community and live day-to-day is the target .... not passing for a Portuguese.

After 27 years of marriage to a Portuguese (and a grounding of French and Castillian), I can "fala pelos cotovelos" as they say here (well, I am Irish!) ...... but I still need to concentrate on what's being said, it's still difficult when more than one person speaks at the same time and it's still easy to lose the thread of a conversation (especially when someone uses a term I don't know) - so fluency isn't perfection, it's the ability to converse comfortably. Also, my Portuguese is "informal" - I don't carry the baggage of deference, etc. - so with lawyers, doctors, or other technical issues I still prefer to speak in English - because then I know that I'll say what I need and under my control. I can read Portuguese well and have a good vocab, but my grammar isn't 100% and my written Portuguese is fairly abysmal.

So, to your question..... in my opinion it's best not to presume that the person calling can speak English, so I'd use "Desculpe, mas preciso de falar com alguem que fala inglês, por favor" (deshCULpeh, mezh preCEEso de fallAHR com alGAIM kuh falLAH ingLESH, porr FAvor, stress on the capitalised syllables) - "Sorry, but I need to speak with someone who speaks English". If there's nobody there and you have half a chance to understand what they're saying use "faz favor, fala mais devagar" (fazsh FAvor, falla my-sh deVAGar) - "please speak slower" and if you lose the plot, it's "Desculpe, não entendo, pode repetir mais devagar" (deshCULpeh, nown enTENdo, poduh rePETir my-sh deVAGar" - Sorry, I don't understand could you repeat more slowly. I think my stresses are OK, but hey, I'm a foreigner too!!