Portuguese and French are cousins from the same Latin family. You already carry roughly 70–80% of French vocabulary in recognizable form. Look at these and just read them:
| French | Portuguese | English |
|---|---|---|
| la famille | a família | the family |
| la situation | a situação | the situation |
| impossible | impossível | impossible |
| nécessaire | necessário | necessary |
| arriver | chegar | to arrive |
| la différence | a diferença | the difference |
| l'hôpital | o hospital | the hospital |
| la liberté | a liberdade | freedom |
The patterns are predictable. Once you see these bridges, you unlock hundreds of words:
These phrases will carry you through your first weeks in France. The French care deeply about politeness — even more than the Portuguese. Always lead with Bonjour.
| French | Sounds like... | English |
|---|---|---|
| Bonjour | bohn-ZHOOR | Hello / Good day |
| Bonsoir | bohn-SWAHR | Good evening |
| Merci beaucoup | mair-SEE boh-KOO | Thank you very much |
| S'il vous plaît | seel voo PLEH | Please |
| Excusez-moi | ex-koo-zay MWAH | Excuse me |
| Au revoir | oh ruh-VWAHR | Goodbye |
| Pardon | par-DOHN | Sorry / Pardon |
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Je ne parle pas bien français | I don't speak French well |
| Vous parlez anglais ? | Do you speak English? |
| Vous parlez portugais ? | Do you speak Portuguese? |
| Je ne comprends pas | I don't understand |
| Pouvez-vous répéter ? | Can you repeat? |
| Plus lentement, s'il vous plaît | More slowly, please |
| French | Sounds like... | English |
|---|---|---|
| C'est combien ? | say kohm-BYEH | How much is it? |
| L'addition, s'il vous plaît | lah-dee-SYOHN seel voo PLEH | The check, please |
| Où est... ? | oo EH | Where is...? |
| Je voudrais... | zhuh voo-DREH | I would like... |
| Je cherche... | zhuh SHAIRSH | I'm looking for... |
| Je suis portugaise | zhuh swee por-too-GEHZ | I am Portuguese (fem.) |
| Nous habitons en France | noo zah-bee-TOHN ahn FRAHNSS | We live in France |
Portuguese has o / a / os / as. French has the same idea — your instincts will serve you well:
Just like Portuguese! Le marché (o mercado), la maison (a casa), les voisins (os vizinhos). Many words that are feminine in Portuguese are also feminine in French.