My friend Tim once said that speaking Portuguese is like speaking Spanish drunk with a sock in your mouth. He's actually pretty right, and that's what makes it so fun.
The language is very nasal, so basically if you don't sound like you're whining a little bit while you speak, you're not doing it right. When Brazilians are actually whining, the nasality (and the volume) reach ridiculous levels. Additionally, T is "ch" and S is "juh" and if words end in hard syllables, an "ie" noise is added after them for no apparent reason. For example:
Mackey: the kids' name for my friend Mac
ippie-oppie: hip hop
pikki-nikki: picnic
and my fave, Chee-cha-nee-kee starring Leo and Kate and that old woman who is still alive! (Happy Titanic anniversary, btw. Or sad, I guess.)
Also, "x" in the Portuguese alphabet is pronounced "sheesh" -- Brazilian restaurants or snack stands, in their effort to Americanize, therefore advertise X-Burgers (cheeseburgers). And in perhaps the most confusing pronunciation/translation (aside from "nao" meaning "no" and "no" meaning "on the" and "agora" meaning "now"), the word for "pull" in Portuguese is puxe, pronounced "push." WHAAAAA
Ich werde Reich und $Millionär
4 years ago
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