Brazilpod » Pronunciation

Lesson 24: Intonation

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 15:30:17 +0000

Today’s lesson is totally different. Instead of listening to a dialog and comparing the sounds to Spanish, our team discusses a number of audio clips that illustrate Brazilian Portuguese intonation patterns. Do not worry about understanding what they clips are saying.

The objective of today’s lesson is to listen to the music, rhythm, and pitch of Brazilian Portuguese. And yes, Brazilians do think of Halls Mentho-Lyptus as candy!

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 24

Lesson 23: Cool Little Words, Nicknames

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 18:35:29 +0000

Let’s see if we have this right? Michelle’s family gave her the nickname “witch” because of how moody she became when under stress at school, right? Wow, that’s a mean nickname, at least from a North American point of view.

This lesson is a bit different in that we don’t look at pronunciation directly, but we do look at the little extra words that people add to their speech, like, you know, umm, well, like, whatever, you know?

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 23

Lesson 22: Epenthetic Vowels (wow, fancy word!), Fast Food

Mon, 19 Mar 2007 01:27:27 +0000

Epenthe … what? Epenthetic Vowels. We know, it sounds like a tropical disease, but it’s really the linguistic feature that produces such great Brazilian words as “piquenique” for picnic.

Valdo isn’t sure he can bring himself to say “hoti doggie” for “hot dog,” but he has no problem with “fasti foodi.”

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 22

Lesson 21: Pronunciation of syllable-final ‘l’, Making Prints of Digital Photos

Tue, 13 Mar 2007 14:16:22 +0000

If you would like to say the name of their country correctly, Michelle and Valdo are here to show us how to say “Brasil,” which really comes out more like “Braziw.”

That is the trick in lesson 21. They also share their experience at self-service digital photo machines.

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 21

Lesson 20: Pronunciation of “lh”, Automatic Sprinklers

Wed, 07 Mar 2007 15:28:57 +0000

The “mulher molhada trabalhava” is rendered in Spanish as “mujer mojada tabajaba.” That’s our basic rule: words spelled with “j” in Spanish are often spelled with “lh” in Portuguese. However, you’ve got to hear the podcast to find out how they are pronounced.

Culturally, Valdo and Michelle admire the number of automatic sprinklers that are found in residential areas in the United States.

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 20

Lesson 19: Pronunciation of “nh”, Laundromats, Really?

Fri, 02 Mar 2007 14:56:15 +0000

Valdo and Michelle still can’t get used to the idea of taking their clothes to a laundromat and using the coin-operated machines. Sure enough, in Brazil you either wash clothes at home or pay someone else to do the laundry.

As they talk of laundromats, we’ll hear the pronunciation of many words that are spelled with “nh,” similar to the Spanish “ñ.”

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 19

Lesson 18: Pronunciation of “ch”, You Call That a Steak House?

Mon, 26 Feb 2007 16:20:26 +0000

For the meat lovers of the world, we present the Brazilian-style “churrascarias” and the “rodízio” buffets. Get ready for over 30 different cuts of meat that will come by your table, and that doesn’t include the salad bar either! Michelle is partial to “coração de galinha” (chicken hearts). Valdo can’t wait for the “costelinha de carneiro” (rack of lamb). Orlando loves the popular “picanha”, which he can’t even say in English, but he knows it is his favorite. No wonder Valdo and Michelle think of American steak restaurants as snacks.

Pronunciation is easy: “ch” in Portuguese always sounds like “sh.”

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 18

Lesson 17: Pronunciation of “j”, “ge”, and “gi”, Wearing That Tiny Bikini

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 17:39:22 +0000

From a North American perspective, the Brazilians have very skimpy swimming suits. However, from Valdo and Michelle’s perspective, North American swimsuits are “gigantes”, “enormes.” In the end, as Michelle explains, “não importo, vou continuar com o meu biquini do Brasil” (I don’t care, I’m going to keep on using my Brazilian bikini).

As to pronunciation, did Orlando really say that he wanted to name his daughter “Janela” (window)? Good thing he didn’t!

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 17

Lesson 16: Pronunciation of “b”, “d”, and “g”, Adding Tax to Purchased Items

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 17:23:38 +0000

For once, a lesson that is easy for native speakers of English, but tough for the native speakers of Spanish. We’re talking about how to pronounce words with “b”, “d”, and “g.” Just wait to hear Jose Luis say the word “abogado”!

As to the cultural topic, Valdo and Michelle are trying to get used to adding tax to the price of the items that they buy.

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 16

Lesson 15: Pronunciation of “r” sounds (alt), Good Tippers

Thu, 08 Feb 2007 22:21:51 +0000

Our carioca is back! Once again Vivian Flanzer joins Michelle and Valdo to help us compare how people from Rio de Janeiro pronounce words the “r” sounds. So now we can compare Bahia, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo.

This lesson repeats the dialog from Lesson #14, but is sure doesn’t sound the same when Vivian is talking.

PODCAST LINK: Lesson 15