English Pronunciation for European Portuguese Speakers
Your strengths first, then the fixes that change how clearly you are understood.
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First language
If your first language is European Portuguese
These are the patterns European Portuguese speakers bring most often. Nothing here is a mistake — it is your first language doing exactly what it always does. Each row says where the fix lives.
| The challenge | What often happens | Go to |
|---|---|---|
| The TH sounds | 'think' → 'tink' or 'sink', 'this' → 'dis' or 'zis' | The TH Sound |
| Final S, not 'sh' | 'books' → 'booksh', 'is' → 'ish' | The -S Ending |
| The English R | the throat R of 'carro' stands in for the tongue R | The English R |
| Lighten the L | 'light' and 'love' come out heavy and swallowed | The English L |
| Reduced too far | unstressed vowels disappear — 'potato' → 'p'tato' | The Schwa |
| Ship vs sheep | the short and long 'i' blur into one | Long vs Short Vowels |
| The -ED ending | 'walked' loses its ending, or gains a syllable | The -ED Ending |
| Nasal colouring | nasal vowels tint 'don't' and 'think' | see the tip |
| The H sound | 'house' → 'ouse', 'happy' → 'appy' | Silent T and H |
A note on sources. The book has one Portuguese section covering both Brazilian and European Portuguese. Rows drawn from the book are the book's Portuguese rows rather than variety-specific ones — this site draws a distinction the book does not.
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The European Portuguese guide
The full guide: what you already do well, the fixes that matter most, and minimal pairs to practise out loud. Free, and yours without giving us anything.
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