{"id":13375,"date":"2020-01-21T15:26:44","date_gmt":"2020-01-21T20:26:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.pimsleur.com\/?p=13375"},"modified":"2025-11-20T11:42:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T16:42:14","slug":"how-similar-are-portuguese-spanish-and-italian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pimsleur.com\/blog\/how-similar-are-portuguese-spanish-and-italian\/","title":{"rendered":"Portuguese vs. Spanish: Similarities and Differences"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s often thought that Portuguese and Spanish are mutually intelligible. To some degree, that\u2019s true. But can a Portuguese speaker understand Spanish, and vice versa? A chat between speakers of the two languages can be understood on some level, though not totally.Plus, there\u2019s the additional layer of regional differences within each language. European Portuguese<\/a> and Brazilian Portuguese<\/a> contrast in context, pace, pronunciation, and more. The same is true with Castilian Spanish<\/a> and Latin American Spanish<\/a>. Thus, a Brazilian Portuguese speaker might find it harder to converse with a Castilian speaker, as opposed to someone with Latin American Spanish as their native tongue. However, conversation between Latin American Spanish and European Spanish<\/a> has a high degree of intelligibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this article, let\u2019s focus on how Portuguese is similar to Spanish. Once you understand these Portuguese vs Spanish differences, you\u2019ll be able to decide which language to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Similar Are the Two Languages? Parallels and Differences Between Portuguese and Spanish<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Portuguese and Spanish similarities are prominent in both vocabulary and pronunciation. These factors make the languages somewhat intelligible to each other; Portuguese is similar to Spanish enough that the transition between the languages is fairly smooth for fluent speakers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Important Note:<\/strong> <\/strong>Brazilian Portuguese and European Portuguese<\/a> are drastically different. Brazilian Portuguese has a different linguistic history<\/a> and influence from the vast diversity of Indigenous tribes, African slaves, and subsequent immigrants to the country. The Portuguese in this article is geared toward Portuguese spoken in Portugal.The Portuguese vs Spanish vocabulary and pronunciation examples below highlight how to transfer Spanish words and concepts over to Portuguese.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vocabulary in\u202fSpanish and Portuguese: Can You Spot the Differences? <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The vocabulary is the easiest part for Spanish speakers, and it really illustrates how similar Portuguese is to Spanish.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the top vocabulary hacks to remember: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. <\/strong>-i\u00f3n \u2192 -\u00e3o <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Words ending in -i\u00f3n<\/em> in Spanish end in -\u00e3o<\/em> in Portuguese\u202f(i.e. administrac<\/em>i\u00f3n<\/em><\/strong> \u2192\u202f\u202fadministra\u00e7<\/em>\u00e3o<\/em><\/strong>) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. <\/strong>z \u2192 \u00e7: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\u202fcedilla<\/a>\u202f(\u00e7), or squiggly c, oftentimes replaces the soft c or z in Spanish. Examples include\u202fabra\u00e7o<\/em>\u202f(abrazo<\/em>),\u202fta\u00e7a\u202f(taza), and\u202fdan\u00e7a\u202f(danza.)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. –<\/strong>io\/a<\/em><\/strong>\u202f\u2192 -o\/<\/strong>a: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The common Spanish\u202fdiphthong<\/a> \u202f\u201cio\/a\u201d is rarely used in Portuguese, and is replaced with o\/a. Examples include espa\u00e7o (espacio), justi\u00e7a (justicia)<\/em>, and pre\u00e7o (precio)<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. –<\/strong>ano\/an\u202f\u2192 -\u00e3o: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though Portuguese does have words that end in -ano\/an,<\/em> it is much more likely that words ending in -ano\/an<\/em> in Spanish will take an -\u00e3o<\/em> suffix. Common examples include m\u00e3o<\/em> (mano)<\/em> and p\u00e3o (pan)<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. <\/strong>-ito\/ita<\/em><\/strong> <\/strong>\u2192 -inho\/inha: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\u202fdiminutive<\/a>\u202fchanges only slightly in Portuguese (i.e. cafecito \u2192 \u202fcafezinho, gatita \u2192 \u202fgatinha.<\/em>) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. <\/strong>por+ el\/la<\/em><\/strong>\u202f<\/strong>\u2192 pelo\/pela:<\/em><\/strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not to be confused with\u202fpelo<\/em>\u202f(hair) or\u202fpela<\/em>\u202f(to peel) in Spanish, the words <\/em>\u201cpor + el<\/em>\u201d and \u201cpor + la<\/em>\u201d transform into pelo<\/em> and pela<\/em> (i.e. Voy a pasar por la casa<\/em>. \u2192 \u202fVou passar pela casa<\/em>.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. <\/strong>h<\/em><\/strong> \u2192 <\/strong>f<\/em><\/strong>: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Spanish, the Latin \u201cf\u201d often becomes an \u201ch\u201d (i.e. farina\u202f<\/em>\u2192<\/strong>\u202f<\/em><\/strong>harina<\/em>), whereas the Portuguese (farinha<\/em>), French (farine<\/em>), and Italian (farina<\/em>) stay true to the original. Other examples include formiga<\/em> (hormiga<\/em>) and forno<\/em> (horno<\/em>). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. <\/strong>-ales<\/em><\/strong> & –<\/strong>eles\u202f\u2192 -ais & -\u00e9is: <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u202f<\/strong>Be on the lookout for different plural forms in Portuguese. The singular form of a word could be the same in both Spanish and Portuguese, like\u202fcoral<\/em>\u202for hotel<\/em>, but it changes in the plural form (i.e. corales\u202f<\/em>\u2192\u202f<\/em><\/strong>corais, hoteles\u202f<\/em>\u2192\u202f<\/em><\/strong>hot\u00e9is<\/em>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. <\/strong>muy & mucho\/a \u2192 muito\/a: <\/em><\/strong>\u202f<\/strong>Lucky for us, there is no difference in Portuguese between the Spanish words\u202fmuy<\/em>\u202fand\u202fmucho<\/em>. In Portuguese, they are both muito<\/em>, and follow the same gender and plural agreements as Spanish (i.e. Muchas personas son muy bonitas<\/em>. <\/em>\u2192\u202f<\/em><\/strong> Muitas pessoas s\u00e3o muito bonitas<\/em>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pronunciation: Can You Hear It?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The differences between Portuguese and Spanish are bridged by pronunciation. If you speak Spanish, you should be able to understand Portuguese easily by simply tuning your ears! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pronunciation (or phonetics) of Portuguese is the kryptonite of Spanish speakers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many times, the words are exactly the same in Spanish, letter for letter, and Spanish speakers miss out on a golden opportunity to understand a new language. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are the best pronunciation hacks to use your Spanish knowledge to understand Portuguese. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. <\/strong>rr\u202f\u2192 <\/em><\/strong>\/h\/: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The double \u201cr\u201d in Portuguese is not rolled but sounds like an English \u201ch\u201d or Spanish \u201cj.\u201d Even though the word for car is\u202fcarro<\/em>\u202fin both Spanish and Portuguese, Spanish speakers don\u2019t catch that the double \u201cr\u201d sounds like an \/h\/. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. <\/strong>-\u00e3o \u2192 <\/em><\/strong>nasal \/ow\/:<\/strong> <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u202f<\/strong>The\u202f-\u00e3o<\/em> in Portuguese sounds like a very nasal \u201cow\u201d in English. Now, do you remember that\u202f –i\u00f3n<\/em> \u2192 -\u00e3o<\/em>\u202fand -ano\/an<\/em> \u2192 -\u00e3o<\/em>\u202fyou read about in the vocabulary section? Don\u2019t misunderstand these words because they end in a nasally \u201cow.\u201d For example, educa\u00e7\u00e3o<\/em> sounds like \/eh-du-ca-sow\/. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. <\/strong>-al & -el\u2192 <\/em><\/strong>\/a\u028a\/:<\/strong> <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Spanish, words ending in –al<\/em> and –el<\/em> have a hard \u201cl\u201d sound, whereas in Portuguese they have a long \u201cu\u201d sound, like in the words \u201chou<\/strong>se\u201d and \u201cou<\/strong>t.\u201d So that the word\u202fglobal\u202f<\/em> sounds like \/glow-baw\/. In addition to these contrasting pronunciation and vocabulary factors, it\u2019s helpful to remember that Portuguese is similar to Spanish for some language elements but much different for others, like accent marks<\/a> and prepositions<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is Portuguese More Difficult Than Spanish? <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Answer:\u202fIt<\/strong>\u202fdepends<\/strong>. We have to take the following into account: <\/p>\n\n\n\n