Brazilian food vocabulary is rich with sensory adjectives — 'gostoso' (tasty), 'doce' (sweet), 'salgado' (salty), 'quente' (hot), 'gelado' (ice-cold). In this lesson you'll learn to describe flavors and temperatures like a local, and to intensify them with the three most Brazilian adverbs of all: 'muito', 'bem', and 'super'. By the end, you'll sound like you grew up at a padaria.
Learning tips
- Adjectives in -o change to -a in the feminine: gostoso → gostosa, salgado → salgada. Adjectives in -e or -m (doce, quente, ruim) don't change in the singular.
- 'Gostoso/a' is the #1 word for 'tasty' in daily BR — use it more than 'delicioso'. It's warm, natural, and everywhere.
- 'Bem' as an intensifier ('bem quente', 'bem frio') is hugely Brazilian — more enthusiastic than 'muito'.
- 'Super' is used as a prefix and an adverb: 'super doce', 'super gostoso'. Very informal and youthful.
- 'Apimentado' and 'picante' both mean 'spicy' — Brazilian food is usually NOT spicy by default, unlike Mexican or Thai cuisine. If you want spice, ask for 'pimenta' (pepper) on the side.
Warm-up & Active Recall
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| gostar de | to like (+ de) |
| adorar | to love, adore |
| odiar | to hate |
| preferir | to prefer |
| a feijoada | the feijoada |
| o pão de queijo | the cheese bread |
| a coxinha | the coxinha |
| o açaí | the açaí |
| o brigadeiro | the brigadeiro |
| delicioso | delicious |
Dialog
Thiago and Beatriz are at a padaria in Rio debating the eternal question: sweet or savory? Along the way they use every flavor adjective and intensifier in the lesson. Notice how the adjectives 'agree' with the food (feminine coxinha → fria/quente; masculine brigadeiro → doce), and how 'muito', 'bem', and 'super' amplify them.
Vocabulary
Active words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| doce | /ˈdo.si/ | sweet | For food: 'bolo doce', 'café doce'. Doesn't change in singular. |
| salgado | /sawˈɡa.du/ | salty, savory | Also the umbrella word for non-sweet snacks ('salgados') |
| apimentado | /a.pi.mẽˈta.du/ | spicy | Brazilian food is rarely very spicy — pimenta is optional |
| azedo | /aˈze.du/ | sour, tart | Lemon, unripe fruit, vinegar |
| amargo | /aˈmaʁ.ɡu/ | bitter | Strong coffee, dark chocolate |
| quente | /ˈkẽ.tʃi/ | hot (temperature) | For food/drinks. Doesn't change in singular. |
| frio | /ˈfɾi.u/ | cold | Masculine: 'frio'. Feminine: 'fria' |
| gelado | /ʒeˈla.du/ | ice-cold, chilled | Stronger than 'frio' — for drinks: 'cerveja gelada' |
| gostoso | /ɡosˈto.zu/ | tasty, yummy | THE everyday BR word for 'tasty'. Masculine/feminine: gostoso/gostosa. |
| ruim | /ʁuˈĩ/ | bad (in quality/taste) | Doesn't change in singular. Plural: ruins |
Passive words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| picante | /piˈkɐ̃.tʃi/ | spicy, hot | Alternative to 'apimentado' |
| delicado | /de.liˈka.du/ | delicate, subtle | For refined flavors |
| forte | /ˈfɔʁ.tʃi/ | strong (flavor) | Coffee, cheese, liquor |
| leve | /ˈlɛ.vi/ | light | Opposite of heavy — for food or drinks |
| pesado | /peˈza.du/ | heavy | For rich, filling food — a feijoada can be 'pesada' |
| cremoso | /kɾeˈmo.zu/ | creamy | Smooth texture — mousse, avocado, açaí |
Useful chunks
| Word | Translation |
|---|---|
| muito gostoso / super gostoso | very tasty / super tasty |
| bem quente / bem frio | nice and hot / nice and cold (emphatic) |
Grammar: Adjective agreement with food (gender and number); intensifiers muito, bem, super
| Concordância | Masc. sg. | Fem. sg. | Masc. pl. | Fem. pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| gostoso | o prato gostoso | a comida gostosa | os pratos gostosos | as comidas gostosas |
| doce | o bolo doce | a sobremesa doce | os bolos doces | as sobremesas doces |
| salgado | o petisco salgado | a coxinha salgada | os petiscos salgados | as coxinhas salgadas |
| quente | o café quente | a sopa quente | os cafés quentes | as sopas quentes |
| ruim | o prato ruim | a comida ruim | os pratos ruins | as comidas ruins |
Regra: adjetivos terminados em -o mudam para -a no feminino (gostoso → gostosa). Adjetivos terminados em -e ou -m geralmente não mudam no singular (doce, quente, ruim), só no plural.
Intensificadores — informais, super brasileiros:
| Intensificador | Uso | Exemplo |
|---|---|---|
| muito | neutro, universal | A comida é muito gostosa. |
| bem | enfático, coloquial | O café está bem quente! |
| super | entusiasta, jovem | O brigadeiro é super doce! |
| -íssimo/a | muito alto | A sopa está quentíssima! |
Dica: 'Gostoso' em português brasileiro = 'tasty', 'delicious' (para comida). É a palavra mais usada no dia a dia — mais que 'delicioso'.
Brazilian adjectives must agree with the food they describe in two ways: gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural).
Agreement table — adjectives ending in '-o':
| Base form | Masc. sg. | Fem. sg. | Masc. pl. | Fem. pl. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| gostoso | o prato gostoso | a comida gostosa | os pratos gostosos | as comidas gostosas |
| salgado | o petisco salgado | a coxinha salgada | os petiscos salgados | as coxinhas salgadas |
| frio | o café frio | a sopa fria | os cafés frios | as sopas frias |
Adjectives ending in '-e' or '-m' — no change in singular:
| Base | Masc. sg. | Fem. sg. | Plural |
|---|---|---|---|
| doce | o bolo doce | a sobremesa doce | doces |
| quente | o café quente | a sopa quente | quentes |
| ruim | o prato ruim | a comida ruim | ruins (irregular plural) |
Three must-know intensifiers — all Brazilian:
| Intensifier | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| muito | neutral, universal | A comida é muito gostosa. |
| bem | enthusiastic, colloquial | O café está bem quente! |
| super | trendy, informal | O brigadeiro é super doce! |
| -íssimo/a | literary 'very X' | A sopa está quentíssima! |
Ser vs. estar with food:
- Use ser for inherent qualities: 'O brigadeiro é doce.' (Brigadeiro is sweet — always.)
- Use estar for the current state: 'O café está frio.' (The coffee is cold — right now.)
At A1 you don't need to master this distinction yet — both are heard in daily speech.
Exercises
Fill in the Blanks
Add the correct form of the adjective (watch gender agreement!).
- A coxinha está muito (tasty, fem.).(gostoso, fem. sg.)
- Prefiro café bem (hot).(hot, masc. sg. — doesn't change)
- O brigadeiro é super (sweet).(sweet, masc. sg.)
- Esta comida está (bad) hoje.(bad — same for masc./fem. in sg.)
- O café sem açúcar é muito (bitter).(bitter, masc. sg.)
Grammar Application
Change the gender or number as indicated.
- Masc. → Fem.: gostoso → (masc. → fem., -o → -a)
- Sg. → Pl. (masc.): prato gostoso → pratos (add plural -s)
- Sg. → Pl. (fem.): comida ruim → comidas (irregular plural of 'ruim')
- Masc. → Fem.: salgado → (masc. → fem., -o → -a)
- Intensificador coloquial para 'quente' (com 'bem'): o café é quente(colloquial intensifier — 3 letters)
Translation (English → Portuguese)
Translate each sentence. Watch the gender of the food and the agreement of the adjective.
- The food is very tasty.
- I prefer sweet, not salty.
- This coffee is super hot.
- The dishes are delicious.
- The soup is cold and bad.
Creative Construction
Describe three foods you know using flavor adjectives and intensifiers. Watch the gender agreement!
Takeaway
Adjectives agree with food in gender and number. -o adjectives change to -a in the feminine (gostoso → gostosa). -e and -m adjectives don't change in the singular. Use 'muito', 'bem', or 'super' to intensify — all three are Brazilian favorites.