Brazilian

How to spell brazilian

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce brazilian

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does brazilian mean?

1. adjectiveRelating to Brazil, its people, or its culture.
2. nounA person who is from Brazil or a citizen of Brazil.

Brazilian in a sentence

• adjective

  The menu featured several brazilian dishes made with black beans and rice.

• noun

  As a proud brazilian, he celebrated every goal his national team scored.

• adjective

  She practised her brazilian Portuguese before the business trip to São Paulo.

• noun

  The company hired a brazilian to manage its operations in Rio.

Where does brazilian come from?

Language of origin: Other

This word is built on the name of Brazil, which itself comes from the Portuguese word brasil, the name given to a tropical hardwood that yielded a prized red dye. That tree name traces back to the Romance root brasa, meaning 'glowing coals' or 'embers', a reference to the deep ember-red colour of the timber. Portuguese traders were already shipping 'brazilwood' before the South American territory was named, and when explorers found vast forests of the dye-tree there, the land became known as the 'land of brazil'. English added the familiar suffix -ian, used to form words meaning 'native of' or 'relating to', to produce brazilian. The spelling trap is real: the single l and the unexpected z (rather than s) both come straight from the Portuguese original, so the word looks less regular than its English ending suggests.

How the word is built

• Brazil (the country, from Portuguese brasil)
• -ian (suffix meaning 'belonging to' or 'native of')