60+ Most Beautiful Words in Portuguese
As a Brazilian, I understand the struggle in learning Portuguese, it is a complex language, full of grammar rules, and just a verb conjugation already gives a knot to the brain.
Despite the difficulty, I find it a beautiful language and although I don’t think I would be able to teach you the whole language, I would like to share with you the most beautiful Portuguese words, and the cutest ones too.
Although they are just a few words on this list, they will surely give you an idea of the Brazilian culture and how we treat each other
You probably have already heard about Brazilians being touching and warm people, and with the beautiful words in Portuguese below, we’ll be sure about that.
Portuguese is also spoken in other countries, like Portugal and some places in Africa, however, the Portuguese words below, are most commonly used in Brazilian Portuguese.
Also read:
- Best Portuguese Quotes and Popular Sayings
- Popular Slangs in Portuguese
- 100 Most Common Verbs in Portuguese
- 20+ Unique Portuguese Words
1. How to say Beautiful in Portuguese
For those of you who have been wondering, here it is, 5 ways to say beautiful in Portuguese:
1. Bonito (masculine) / Bonita (feminine)
2. Lindo (masculine) / Linda (feminine)
3. Belo (masculine) / Bela (feminine)
4. Formoso (masculine) / Formosa (feminine)
5. Encantador (masculine) / Encantadora (feminine)
2. How to say “you are beautiful” in Portuguese
Now that you have learned how to say the words “beautiful” in Portuguese, it is time to learn how to say “you are beautiful” in Portuguese”.
Here are a few ways to say “you are beautiful” in Portuguese, using the words you just learned:
1. Você é bonito (if addressing a male) / Você é bonita (if addressing a female).
2. Você é lindo (if addressing a male) / Você é linda (if addressing a female).
3. Você é belo (if addressing a male) / Você é bela (if addressing a female).
4. Você é formoso (if addressing a male) / Você é formosa (if addressing a female).
5. Você é encantador (if addressing a male) / Você é encantadora (if addressing a female).
3. Beautiful Portuguese Words
Here are some of the most beautiful words in Portuguese:
Saudade
The feeling of missing someone or something dear
There is no word in English equal to Saudade but it can be roughly translated as “To miss”.
It is the act of missing someone or something really dear to you. The melancholic nostalgia and longing for a dear person or place that is now far away from you, that you don’t see for a long time.
Beijinho
Little Kiss
Beijinho is a sweet way to “send kisses” to someone. When Brazilian people greet each other, we usually kiss one another on the cheek.
So Beijinho is a combination of Beijo (kiss) with the suffix –nho (meaning little or cute) and represents the act of kissing in a letter, message, or email. It is an equal and more informal way to say goodbye.
However, it is important to remember that men don’t kiss other’s men cheeks nor send Beijos or Beijinhos to each other.
Carinho
Affection
It represents the action of showing affection to someone, like when you are giving someone you like a massage or gently stroke, or soothe someone, you can say you are giving that person carinho.
You can also tell others that you have carinho for someone, it is an excellent way to say you have affection for the person. It is a pretty common thing to say between people who are close or like each other.
When you are taking care of someone, or you ask about someone’s day, it is because you have carinho for that person.
Cafuné
Petting or caressing someone
I believe that this word only exists in Brazilian Portuguese.
It represents the loving act of petting or caressing someone, or a pet, or even, simply the act of running the fingers through someone’s hair (or fur, if in the case of a pet).
Normally people do that to each other during sleeping time or watching TV. Among families or couples, it is normal to ask for a cafuné when you feel like sleeping or enjoying a TV show with the person next to you.
We Brazilians are very touching, I know.
Xodó
Roughly translated as “sweety”
It is a cute way to call someone or something (you can say that to your pet, for example) you love and appreciate.
You can both call your boyfriend/girlfriend “xodó”, to tell your friends that this or that person is a “xodó”.
It is a lovely way to call someone.
Mimo
A small gift/ or delight
Mimo can mean two things. First, it can mean a gift, usually a small gift. If you are going to visit someone and decide to bring them some chocolate, you will say it is just a mimo. Or if you travel and bring someone a souvenir, you just got them a mimo.
Or you can also call someone a mimo, saying someone is a mimo means that the person is a delight. It is a sweet and very tender way to call someone you like.
Beija-Flor
Hummingbird
This is what we call the Hummingbird in Brazil. Beija means kiss and flor means flower in Portuguese, and the term represents the delicate way these little birds feed on nectar. Definitely the cutest and most appropriate name for this bird.
Poesia
Poetry
Brazil is famous for its famous writers and beautiful poetry. Poetry is deeply linked to Brazilian culture. Unfortunately, you have to learn Portuguese to fully appreciate the meaning of our poetry.
But by translating some Brazilian songs as “The Girl from Ipanema,” you can have an idea (although the original version is way more poetic, I may say).
4. Best words in Portuguese
Here are some positive words in Portuguese, these are some of the best words in Portuguese because they represent good feelings or are very meaningful.
Alegria – Joy
Amor – Love
Esperança – Hope
Gratidão – Gratitude
Felicidade – Happiness
Paz – Peace
Coragem – Courage
Bondade – Kindness
Simplicidade – Simplicity
Empatia – Empathy
Compaixão – Compassion
Harmonia – Harmony
Generosidade – Generosity
Resiliência – Resilience
Serenidade – Serenity
Compreensão – Understanding
Otimismo – Optimism
Amizade – Friendship
Euforia – Euphoria
5. Pretty Words in Portuguese
Here I curated some pretty words in Portuguese, they all have pretty meanings but also sound really pleasant when spoken.
Melodia – Melody
Efêmero – Ephemeral
Cintilante – Glistening
Deslumbrante – Dazzling
Sonhador – Dreamy
Alvorada – Dawn
Deslizante – Graceful
Luminoso – Luminous
Época – Epoch
Efervescente – Effervescent
Enigma – Enigma
Suspensão – Suspension
Harmonioso – Harmonious
Estrelado – Starry
Poético – Poetic
Seráfico – Seraphic
Aurora – Aurora
Resplandecente – Resplendent
Brilhante – Brilliant
6. Cool Portuguese Words
Let’s go to my favorite part now, the cool Portuguese words! These are usually slang or very popular words that most of the time, foreigners are not aware of.
Descolado(a)
Cool, laid-back
This is a cool way to call someone who has a cool style or does cool things. As an example, if you are wearing trendy clothes, you are descolado. Doing some sports is very descolado too, if you know how to skate, for example, well, I will find your descolado!
Maneiro(a)
Awesome, cool
Same as descolado, but this is very 2000’s slang! Still cool though.
Estiloso(a)
Stylish
Same as descolado, but for clothes usually, you have your own style, and everything looks nice, very well put together, for example, you are Estiloso.
Be careful though, if you choose the wrong pieces to compose your look, you can be called Cafona!
Cafona
Out of trend
When you are completely out of trend, things don’t match, you look corny, and you will be called Cafona.
Top
Top, super cool
We use this word a lot nowadays. When someone buys something cool for example, and the person tells you about it, you can reply like: woow top!!
Irado(a)
Rad, awesome
We say this when someone is awesome, but also when it is something that gives you adrenaline. Like for example, skydiving, you can say “é iraaaaado!!” like “it’s exciting”
Fera
Beast, someone skilled
When someone is really good at something, you can say someone is Fera at something.
Zueira
Joking, fun
The Zueira never ends. If you spend time online, you have probably already seen a Brazilian commenting on it in an online game or forum.
Parada
Thing, stuff
This is cool slang. You can pretty much call anything a “parada”. Forgot the name of the thing? Call it parada and wait for the rest of the people to figure out what you are talking about!
Treta
Conflict, drama
Are neighbors fighting in the middle of the night? It’s a treta. Your coworker isn’t looking at your face today? Probably a treta happened. If he ate your lunch that was on the fridge though. Then he is definitely looking for a treta.
Who doesn’t love a treta??
Massa
Cool, great
Legal is the right way to say cool in Portuguese, but saying massa is way more massa.
Bagulho
Thing, stuff
Like parada, you can call everything a bagulho. But watch out, it can also mean weed, and actually in the beginning this slang was used solely for weed!
Perrengue
Difficult situation
Perrengue is when you are, or passed through a hard situation or period. There is a pretty famous Instagram account called Perrengue Chique in Brazil.
If you tell your friends you passed through a hard period, this will sound boring and they will reply by saying everybody passes through difficult times in life, get over it.
But now, if you tell them you passed through a Perrengue!! You will see everybody sitting around just to listen!
