Top 50 phrases to get by Portugal: Essential communication

🇵🇹 [Olá] is fine in most everyday situations in Portugal, but it is a bit more direct than a time-of-day greeting. With strangers, locals often open with [bom dia], [boa tarde], or [boa noite] instead.

💬 Use [obrigado] if you are male and [obrigada] if you are female — it matches the speaker, not the person you are thanking.

🇵🇹 [De nada] is understood, but in Portugal you will very often hear [não faz mal] or [ora essa] instead. So recognize it, but do not be surprised if locals answer differently.

🇵🇹 [Desculpe] works well with strangers for both "sorry" and "excuse me." It is a safe polite choice when you need someone's attention or have bumped into someone.

🇵🇹 [Adeus] can sound more final than English "bye," especially in casual everyday situations. Many locals more often say [tchau] or just a time-of-day farewell.

💬 [Não] has the nasal [ão] sound, which does not rhyme with English "now." In Portugal the vowel is also very reduced, so it can sound short and tight.

🇵🇹 In Portugal, [por favor] is real "please," but not something you need to tack onto every request the way English sometimes does. Tone and greetings often carry a lot of the politeness.