# Português com um sotaque americano?



## albondiga

Hi all,

What are some of the typical characteristics of an American accent when speaking Portuguese?  Are there certain consonants or vowel sounds that Americans learning the language tend to mispronounce?  For example, when speaking Spanish, Americans tend to mispronounce 'b', 'v', 'd', 'a' when appearing at the end of words, etc.

This all assumes that there is a specific Portuguese accent that would be recognized as American... or maybe there is such a thing in Brazil but not Portugal?  Let me know...

Also, if it would be recognized, is the American accent generally considered pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral?  (Feel free to share both your own opinion and what you think is the general consensus of other people...)

Thanks!


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## Usernamed

Hmm are you going to learn portuguese? these questions are funny..
You are right, as each language has a specific accent, it reflects on the language you are learning, that's why we can recognize the country the person is from, just by the accent. So the Americans surely have a peculiar way when they speak portuguese. By what I have seen, I don't see many mistakes and mispronounciations, it's just the accent. Oh sometimes they mispronouce the R, but not always.. oh and the masculine and feminine articles, but it's quite normal to any foreigner to get mixed up with those things.. I think that's all. 
I particularly don't mind to listen to a foreigner speaking portuguese with accent, even if heavy, actually I think it's cute.. hehe.. It's my particular opinion, I don't know about the others. I'm conscious that everyone has difficulties, and I am a good example! I'm a disaster speaking english! hehe


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## Vanda

Albondiga,

The first thing that came to my mind about Americans' accent when speaking Pt is the *-ão* sounds, they can never make it. So words come like coraçao, mao, things like that.
But as Usernamed has said we in general find it cute the way they do. We are not those freak people that think people have to speak our language as if they were native. Brazilians in general like foreigners speaking Pt with accent.


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## Jaune-Vert

One thing that is very common when an English-speaking person talks in Portuguese, as Vanda said, is to forego the *ão *sound. Also, words with "b" and "d" accuse the origin of the speaker... "belo", for example, usually goes "bê-lo" instead of "béh-lo"...

Between the Brazilians, it's very appreciated when a foreign person makes an effort to speak in Portuguese, accent and all.


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## Macunaíma

Generally speaking, Americans and native English speakers soon acquire an excellent pronunciation of Brazilian Portuguese. I have an American friend from Salt Lake City who can speak Portuguese almost without a trace of foreign accent, it's awesome!

Funnily enough, it's the speakers of other romance languages who have most difficulty losing their accents when learning Portuguese, especially native speakers of Spanish and Italian.

I think pronouncing sillables in *ão*/ *ões* can be very tricky for Americans, and even those who have a really good pronunciation can't get the final O's ( which they generally pronounce _ow, _as in _low_ ) and the aspired R's right. They say ama*R* instead of ama*H*, as is the standard pronunciation of Brazilian Portuguese.

All the best!


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## jazyk

> Generally speaking, Americans and native English speakers soon acquire an excellent pronunciation of Brazilian Portuguese. I have an American friend from Salt Lake City who can speak Portuguese almost without a trace of foreign accent, it's awesome!


I can attest to that. I had a Canadian, an American and an Australian student and all of them went home without an accent after their stay in Brazil (and my wonderful lessons, of course  ).


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## Usernamed

Oh I can say the same. I have seen many Americans speaking very well. I have never seen them mispronouncing the -ÃO, ÕES, etc.. but it makes sense.


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## Ayazid

Macunaíma said:


> ... "I think pronouncing sillables in *ão*/ *ões* can be very tricky for Americans, and even those who have a really good pronunciation can't get the final O's ( which they generally pronounce _ow, _as in _low_ ) and the aspired R's right. They say ama*R* instead of ama*H*, as is the standard pronunciation of Brazilian Portuguese".


 
So far as I know, this pronunciation of the syllable-final *R* as *H* is maybe common or even prevalent in Brazilian Portuguese, but certainly not standard, since I have watched a few Brazilian TV stations with pessoas (from São Paulo and the South) pronunciating this *R* from po*r*que or ama*r* as an alveolar tap, like in Spanish, European Portuguese or Italiano. I guess that in the above mentioned areas (São Paulo and Sul) such pronunciation is bastante comum and since there is no standard pronunciation of Brazilian Portuguese, everybody can choose the one which likes most.


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## Outsider

As for what American accents sound like, I refer you to this discussion.


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## albondiga

Thanks, Outsider (and everyone else who has responded, of course)... I did see that thread (it was from just a few days after I posted this one) and find it interesting...

On another note, I agree with Ayazid about having heard a little bit of variation in the syllable-ending R from different speakers... but, then again, we all know how much regional variation there is in Brazilian Portuguese (and Portuguese in general)... (and, personally, that's not the pronunciation I'm aiming for, but that's just me...)


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## btownmeggy

Macunaíma said:


> Funnily enough, it's the speakers of other romance languages who have most difficulty losing their accents when learning Portuguese, especially native speakers of Spanish and Italian.



This is so true, including with Portuguese speakers learning other Romance languages.


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## Hallick

Bom dia,

I was wondering what Portuguese with an american accent sounds like to native speakers in Brasil and Portugal. What would you say is missing in the speech of a person like that? And is there something specific they can do to correct it?

To my own ears, in a manner of speaking, it's like trying to play clarinet with a trumpet. You have all the sheet music (the words of the language), but you're hanging onto the instrument you've been using all your life instead of the one that sounds best with the song. 

Obrigado,
Hallick


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## Que trem doido

Bem dito!!!  

I think that one of the big problems with o sotaque Americano é que a gente (a maioria das vezes) tem grande dificuldade com nasalização com ditongos e com certas vogais como "ã".


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## Vanda

Hi Hallick,

I've merged your topic to this one on the same matter. 
Thank you, Ayazid!


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## Denis555

Well, it also depends a lot on the person. Some can pick up quite quickly the way people pronounce things. Others get stuck in their own language patterns as it was beautifully said by Hallick.

Things to watch out for are nasal sounds, specially nasal diphthongs *ão, õe, am, em* as in n*ão*, informaç*õe*s, estav*am*, b*em*. They're tricky. And the letter "R", I think if I were to imitate a strong American accent I'd certainly pick the r in _road_ and use it in _Rio, caro_, etc 
By the way, when speaking Portuguese say _*Rio*_ as in *Hugh* Grant.

And another characteristic of the American accent or any English speaker is the *o* pronounced as *oh*, *ow* in L*ow* and *e* pronounced as *ay* like M*ay* as mentioned above by _Macunaíma_. 
For instance, Ronaldinho pronounced as *R*onaldinioh [English *R *as in *R*oad, ni instead of nh, and for the final "o" as Oh instead of /u/. And Pelé pronounced as Paylay.

And this "phenomenon" happens not only in Portuguese. One interesting case is the today's Mayday _[an international radio signal used by ships and aircraft needing help when they are in danger]_ coming from the French *venez m'aider* 'come and help me'. /venê mêdê/ ê as in the Portuguese bêbado.

Obviously, that's in the beginning. As you progress in the language, those mispronunciations are left behind. 
But no big worries generally in Brazil a mild foreign accent in seen as "cute" or charming.


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## Macunaíma

Denis555 said:


> By the way, when speaking Portuguese say _*Rio*_ as in *Hugh* Grant.


 
I am sorry to disagree, Denis! _*Hugh*_ to me sounds like *riu* ([he/she] _laughed_), but not like *Rio*. *Rio*, as we usually pronounce it, is a hiatus, while *riu* is a... how do I say it in English? Falling diphthong? Anyway, é um _ditongo decrescente_ (if you know the correct name in English please let me know). 

Rio: ri-u
Riu: ríu


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## Que trem doido

Macunaíma, they are known as falling or descending dipthongs!!!

Abraços!!

O doido


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## Denis555

Macunaíma,
Well, Rio - Hugh is as close as you can get in English. And in a relaxed pronunciation we also pronounce Rio as [ele] riu i.e. like a diphthong.
By the way, have a look at the entry for Rio de Janeiro at the English Wikipedia. They've put among other things the Portuguese pronunciation there: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rio_de_Janeiro


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## Hallick

Vanda said:


> Hi Hallick,
> 
> I've merged your topic to this one on the same matter.
> Thank you, Ayazid!


 
Okay Vanda, thank god you explained that. For a minute there I thought I was losing my mind and I was actually Albondiga suffering from some kind of "Fight Club" psychosis. You freaked me out!


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## Outsider

Macunaíma said:


> I am sorry to disagree, Denis! _*Hugh*_ to me sounds like *riu* ([he/she] _laughed_), but not like *Rio*.


"Hugh" is a rising diphthong. It's pronounced "hiú", not "híu".
As for "riu" versus "rio", I don't know about Brazil but in Portugal many people pronounce them the same way.


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## Macunaíma

Outsider said:


> "Hugh" is a rising diphthong. It's pronounced "hiú", not "híu".
> As for "riu" versus "rio", I don't know about Brazil but in Portugal many people pronounce them the same way.


 
Eu aprendi inglês... quer dizer, comecei a aprender inglês com um inglês que, por acaso, chamava-se Francis Hughes (_ríuz_). Pode ser que também haja a pronúncia _riú_ para Hugh, mas Francis, que era de Ramsgate (Kent) dizia _*ríu*_, então acho que não erro de todo. 

Quanto a Rio-riu, há sim uma distinção entre os dois, o que não quer dizer que aqui também não haja quem as pronuncie igual, princiapalmente ao falar rápido ou 'emendar' com a próxima palavra, como em _Rio de Janeiro_.


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## Outsider

Macunaíma said:


> Eu aprendi inglês... quer dizer, comecei a aprender inglês com um inglês que, por acaso, chamava-se Francis Hughes (_ríuz_). Pode ser que também haja a pronúncia _riú_ para Hugh, mas Francis, que era de Ramsgate (Kent) dizia _*ríu*_, então acho que não erro de todo.


Que estranho, nunca ouvi essa pronúncia. 
Pensando melhor no assunto, talvez alguns anglófonos digam "hu" simplesmente, mas "híu" não conhecia!


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## Ayazid

Vanda said:


> Hi Hallick,
> 
> I've merged your topic to this one on the same matter.
> Thank you, Ayazid!



De nada!


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## Doval

Outsider said:


> "Hugh" is a rising diphthong. It's pronounced "hiú", not "híu".
> As for "riu" versus "rio", I don't know about Brazil but in Portugal many people pronounce them the same way.


 


Macunaíma said:


> Eu aprendi inglês... quer dizer, comecei a aprender inglês com um inglês que, por acaso, chamava-se Francis Hughes (_ríuz_). Pode ser que também haja a pronúncia _riú_ para Hugh, mas Francis, que era de Ramsgate (Kent) dizia _*ríu*_, então acho que não erro de todo.
> 
> Quanto a Rio-riu, há sim uma distinção entre os dois, o que não quer dizer que aqui também não haja quem as pronuncie igual, princiapalmente ao falar rápido ou 'emendar' com a próxima palavra, como em _Rio de Janeiro_.





Outsider said:


> Que estranho, nunca ouvi essa pronúncia.
> Pensando melhor no assunto, talvez alguns anglófonos digam "hu" simplesmente, mas "híu" não conhecia!


Outsider, with some English speakers, when saying a name like "Hughes," as opposed to "Hugh," because the "u" sound is held longer, the "i" sound that occurs at the beginning is stressed more, making the word sound similar to, but not the same as, "rios." I think that's what Macunaíma was referrig to. In fact, many people also add a "w" sound to the plural version of the name, making it sound like "hiuws".


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## Denis555

Here's an example of how George W. Bush would speak Portuguese if he'd learned it. 
So that's how a strong American accent sounds like to Brazilian ears:
http://charges.uol.com.br/2007/05/17/cotidiano-influencia-imperialista/?modo=baloes


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## Alchemy

Denis555 said:


> Here's an example of how George W. Bush would speak Portuguese if he'd learned it.
> So that's how a strong American accent sounds like to Brazilian ears:
> http://charges.uol.com.br/2007/05/17/cotidiano-influencia-imperialista/?modo=baloes


 
That's great.


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