Family is the heart of Brazilian culture, and in this lesson you'll learn to talk about yours. By the end, you'll name your parents, siblings, and grandparents, and use definite articles (o, a, os, as) comfortably — a key habit in Portuguese. Brazilians love talking about family, and showing photos is a classic warm-up move. Vamos lá!
Learning tips
- Portuguese uses 'o' and 'a' (the) before family members far more than English: 'o meu pai', 'a minha mãe'. Embrace it early.
- Be careful with 'os pais' — it means 'parents' (mom + dad), not 'fathers'. Context and gender reveal the meaning.
- The plural of 'mãe' is 'mães' — a nasalized '-ães' ending (also in 'pães' = breads). Practice saying it without a hard 's'.
- 'Irmão' → 'irmãos' (brothers or brothers-and-sisters). This '-ãos' plural type is regular for 'irmão' — other '-ão' words may pluralize differently.
Warm-up & Active Recall
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| obrigado | thank you (masc.) |
| obrigada | thank you (fem.) |
| de nada | you're welcome |
| desculpa | sorry |
| com licença | excuse me |
| por favor | please |
| imagina | don't mention it |
| claro | of course |
| a pessoa | the person |
| o moço | young man (address) |
Dialog
Beatriz shows Thiago a family photo at her home in Santa Teresa. She points out her parents, siblings, and grandparents. Notice how the definite article ('o' / 'a') is almost always included before a family member's role, and how 'os pais' is used collectively to mean 'parents'. Also watch for the traditional 'Dona' (for women) and 'Seu' (for men) — respectful titles used with older people's first names.
Vocabulary
Active words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| a família | /a faˈmi.li.ɐ/ | the family | Feminine noun — 'a família' |
| a mãe | /a ˈmɐ̃j̃/ | the mother | Nasal diphthong -ãe — /ˈmɐ̃j̃/ |
| o pai | /u ˈpaj/ | the father | Watch the plural: 'pais' = parents |
| o irmão | /u iʁˈmɐ̃w̃/ | the brother | Nasal ending -ão |
| a irmã | /a iʁˈmɐ̃/ | the sister | Feminine — nasal 'ã' |
| o filho | /u ˈfi.ʎu/ | the son | The 'lh' sounds like 'ly' in 'million' |
| a filha | /a ˈfi.ʎɐ/ | the daughter | Feminine of 'filho' |
| o avô | /u aˈvo/ | the grandfather | Stressed -ô (closed o) |
| a avó | /a aˈvɔ/ | the grandmother | Stressed -ó (open o) — contrast with 'avô' |
| os pais | /us ˈpajs/ | the parents | Plural of 'pai' — but collectively means 'parents' (mom + dad) |
Passive words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| o bebê | /u beˈbe/ | the baby | Same root as English |
| os gêmeos | /us ˈʒe.mi.us/ | the twins | Masc. plural — 'gêmeas' for female twins |
| o bicho de estimação | /u ˈbi.ʃu dʒi is.tʃi.maˈsɐ̃w̃/ | the pet | Literally 'the pet animal' |
| o cachorro | /u kaˈʃo.ʁu/ | the dog | Masc.; 'a cachorra' for female |
| o gato | /u ˈɡa.tu/ | the cat | Masc.; 'a gata' for female |
| a foto | /a ˈfɔ.tu/ | the photo | Feminine despite the 'o' ending — shortened from 'fotografia' |
Useful chunks
| Word | Translation |
|---|---|
| a minha família | my family (with article) |
| os meus pais | my parents (with article) |
Grammar: Definite articles (o, a, os, as) with family members; plural formation of nouns
| Singular | Plural | Tipo de plural |
|---|---|---|
| o pai | os pais | +s (acento no -í → -i) |
| a mãe | as mães | -e → -es (com til) |
| o irmão | os irmãos | -ão → -ãos (este caso) |
| o filho | os filhos | +s regular |
| a filha | as filhas | +s regular |
| o avô | os avós | +s (também serve como plural misto) |
| a avó | as avós | +s regular |
| a família | as famílias | +s regular |
Importante: os pais significa 'pai e mãe' (the parents), não só 'fathers'. Os avós (pronuncia-se /us aˈvɔjs/) pode significar 'avô e avó' juntos. O português usa o artigo definido (o, a, os, as) com membros da família muito mais do que o inglês. Dizemos 'a minha mãe' ou 'minha mãe' — ambos estão corretos.
Definite articles in Portuguese: every noun has a gender (masculine or feminine) and a number (singular or plural). The article must agree with both.
| Masculine | Feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | o pai | a mãe |
| Plural | os pais | as mães |
Unlike English, Portuguese uses 'the' before family members much more readily: 'a minha mãe' (lit. 'the my mother'). The article is also common with proper names in informal BR: 'o João', 'a Maria'.
Plural formation rules (applied to family words):
- Ends in vowel → add -s: filho → filhos, filha → filhas
- Ends in -m → change to -ns: homem → homens
- Ends in -ão → three possible plurals:
- -ões: avião → aviões, coração → corações
- -ães: pão → pães, alemão → alemães, mãe → mães
- Ends in -l → change -l to -is: animal → animais, Brasil → (no plural, but 'real' → reais)
Key family words:
- os pais = the parents (mom + dad) — collectively
- os avós = the grandparents (both) or 'the grandmothers'; os avôs = the grandfathers
- os filhos = the children (sons + daughters) or 'the sons'
- os irmãos = the siblings or 'the brothers'
Exercises
Fill in the Blanks
Complete each sentence with the correct article or family word.
- minha mãe se chama Rosa. (artigo)(feminine singular article)
- meus pais moram em Santa Teresa. (artigo)(masculine plural article)
- Eu tenho dois . (brother, plural)(plural of 'irmão')
- A Clara é a da Rosa. (daughter)(daughter, feminine)
- minhas irmãs são legais. (artigo)(feminine plural article)
Grammar Application — Plurals
Form the plural of each noun with its article.
- Singular → Plural: o pai → (irregular — just add -s, accent on í → pais)
- Singular → Plural: a mãe → (nasal plural -ães)
- Singular → Plural: o irmão → (-ão plural: this one uses -ãos)
- Singular → Plural: a filha → (regular +s)
- Singular → Plural: a avó → (+s, but accent stays)
Translation (English → Portuguese)
Translate. Remember to include the article before family words when natural.
- This is my family.
- My mother is Rosa.
- My parents live in Rio.
- My grandmother and my grandfather.
- I have one brother and one sister.
Creative Construction
Describe your own family in 3-4 sentences. Use definite articles and at least 5 family words from the lesson.
Takeaway
Brazilian family words: **o pai** (father) / **a mãe** (mother), **os pais** (the parents), **o irmão** (brother) / **a irmã** (sister), **o avô** (grandpa) / **a avó** (grandma). Watch the accent: avô vs. avó! Portuguese uses definite articles (o, a, os, as) before family members much more than English.