Portuguese

How to spell portuguese

10 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce portuguese

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does portuguese mean?

1. adjectiveRelating to Portugal, its people, its culture, or its language.
2. nounThe language spoken in Portugal and Brazil, or the people of Portugal.

Portuguese in a sentence

• adjective

  The museum displayed a collection of portuguese tiles from the sixteenth century.

• noun

  She studied portuguese for two years before moving to Lisbon.

• adjective

  They booked a small portuguese villa near the coast for the summer.

• noun

  The contract was translated into portuguese for the Brazilian office.

Where does portuguese come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word is built from the country name Portugal plus the suffix -ese, which English uses to form adjectives and nouns of nationality, language, or place of origin. That suffix descends from the Latin -ensis, meaning 'belonging to' or 'originating from', and it reached English largely through Italian -ese and Old French. The name Portugal itself traces back to the Latin Portus Cale, literally 'the harbour of Cale', the ancient port that grew into the city now called Porto. Over the centuries Portus Cale was worn down to Portugal, and English speakers attached the familiar -ese ending to describe its people and language. The spelling trap lives in the middle: the silent-feeling -gu- cluster keeps the g hard, so the careful writer must remember the u that many people drop when they write the mistaken 'portugese'.

How the word is built

• Portug- (from Portugal)
• -ese (suffix marking nationality, origin, or language)