How many letters are in the Portuguese alphabet?

26, including K, W and Y, as listed in Base I of the Portuguese Orthographic Agreement. Accented forms such as á and ç do not add separate letters to this count.

Is Portuguese pronunciation phonetic?

Spelling gives useful clues, but it does not tell you everything about pronunciation. Vowel quality, stress and regional accents matter; some letters, such as x, have several sounds. Use written examples with recordings rather than expecting a perfect English spelling equivalent.

What are nasal vowels?

They are vowels produced with air flowing through the nose as well as the mouth. A tilde can indicate nasalization, as in não and pão; m or n can also signal it in context. Listen to the complete word instead of adding an English n sound at the end.

Why does the letter R sound different in Portuguese?

Pronunciation depends on the position in the word and the speaker's accent. Initial r and rr can sound H-like in many Brazilian accents; a single r between vowels, as in caro, is commonly a tap. Compare real speakers rather than treating one sound as universal.

Portuguese Alphabet & Pronunciation Guide for US Learners

How many letters does Portuguese have?

The Portuguese alphabet has 26 letters. Base I of the Orthographic Agreement, published in Brazil's Decree 6,583/2008, lists the alphabet and letter names, including K, W and Y. Accents and the cedilla change how a written word works, but á, ã and ç are not extra letters in that list.

Letter names versus sounds in words

You use letter names to spell a name or email address. You use sounds to pronounce a word: the letter C is named cê, but it sounds different in casa and cinco. The cues below are approximations for English speakers, not phonetic transcriptions. They illustrate common Brazilian pronunciations; regional speech may differ.

Letter	Letter name	Common sound in a word (approximate)	Example
A	á	"ah" in father	casa (house)
B	bê	b in bag	bom (good)
C	cê	k before a/o/u, s before e/i	casa, cinco
D	dê	d; often "j" before an i sound in some accents	dia (often JEE-ah)
E	é	open or closed e; final unstressed e can sound like "ee"	ela, mês, cidade
F	efe	f in fun	feliz
G	gê	g before a/o/u, "zh" before e/i	gato, gelo
H	agá	silent on its own; part of combinations ch, lh, nh	hoje (OH-zhee)
I	i	"ee" in see	vida
J	jota	"zh" like in measure	já (zhah)
K	cá (also capa)	k in foreign names and some borrowed forms	Kant
L	ele	l; often "w" at the end of a syllable in Brazil	Brasil (bra-ZEEW)
M	eme	m before a vowel; can mark nasalization after one	mala, bom
N	ene	n before a vowel; can mark nasalization after one	nada, canto
O	ó	open or closed o; final unstressed o can sound like "oo"	avó, avô, ovo
P	pê	p in spot (no puff)	pai
Q	quê	usually appears as qu; the u can be silent or pronounced	quero, quase
R	erre	varies with position and accent; often a tap between vowels	Rio, caro, carro
S	esse	s at the start, z between vowels; syllable endings vary	sopa, casa
T	tê	t; often "ch" before an i sound in some accents	tia (often CHEE-ah)
U	u	"oo" in food	uva
V	vê	v in van	vamos
W	dáblio	w or v, depending on the name or borrowed word	Wagner
X	xis	sh, ks, z, or s — depends on word	xícara, táxi, exame, próximo
Y	ípsilon	ee (loan words)	yoga
Z	zê	z in zoo	zebra

Which sound patterns need extra listening practice?

1. ão — the nasal diphthong

English "ow" is only a rough starting cue for ão, not an exact equivalent. Listen to the full nasal diphthong in não (no), pão (bread), coração (heart) and irmão (brother). Try to imitate the vowel movement without adding a separate English n at the end.

2. lh — the palatal L

The "lli" in English "million" can be a rough listening cue, but lh is not an exact English sound. Listen to how the letters work together in filho (son), trabalho (work) and melhor (better), rather than saying l and h separately.

3. nh — the palatal N

Close to the "ny" in "canyon" or Spanish ñ. Words: banho (bath), vinho (wine), senhor (mister).

4. r / rr — the H-like R

An H-like sound is common for initial r and doubled rr in many Brazilian accents, but the exact sound varies. Compare caro (expensive), with a single r between vowels, and carro (car), with rr. The University of Texas Tá Falado lesson on regional r sounds provides recordings for that comparison.

The same regional caution applies to dia and tia: some speakers use the “j” and “ch” sounds illustrated above, while others use d and t. Hear that variation in the university's lesson on palatalization.

Where does the stress go in a Portuguese word?

There is no single second-to-last-syllable rule for every word. Endings and written accents provide clues, and some words with final stress have no accent mark. Compare these examples; capital letters show the stressed syllable, not an English pronunciation.

Word	Stress pattern	What to notice
casa	CA-sa	Second-to-last syllable; no written accent
hotel	ho-TEL	Last syllable; no written accent
café	ca-FÉ	Last syllable, marked with an acute accent
lápis	LÁ-pis	Second-to-last syllable, marked with an acute accent
pássaro	PÁS-sa-ro	Third-to-last syllable, marked with an acute accent

Written accents can also distinguish vowel quality: compare avó (grandmother) and avô (grandfather). Learn the spelling, meaning and recording together. The Orthographic Agreement's Bases VIII–XI give the detailed accent rules.

Practice this today

Choose three words from this page. Listen to each in a reliable recording, notice its stressed syllable, and repeat the whole word. Then place it in a short phrase. Return to the recording to compare your attempt, and keep practicing with whole phrases as you learn new words.

Sources and scope of this guide

Brazil's official publication of the Orthographic Agreement: alphabet, letter names and written accent rules.
University of Texas Tá Falado, lesson 10: variation in d/t palatalization.
University of Texas Tá Falado, lesson 15: regional r pronunciation with speaker recordings.

Reviewed October 12, 2026. The English cues and practice instructions are teaching aids; they do not replace audio or describe every accent in Brazil. The external university lessons are designed for Spanish speakers and include English explanations; use their recordings to hear the differences discussed here.