Portuguese (Portugal) · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "agora" in Portuguese (Portugal)?

Q: How do you pronounce agora in Portuguese (Portugal)?

agora is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written [ɐˈɡɔɾɐ]. It means “now.” Say "uh-GAW-ruh" — stress the middle syllable with an open "aw" sound, and keep the first and last "a" short and weak.

Say "uh-GAW-ruh" — stress the middle syllable with an open "aw" sound, and keep the first and last "a" short and weak.

agora [ɐˈɡɔɾɐ]

Stress falls on the second syllable "go", which has an open [ɔ]; the unstressed "a" vowels at the start and end both reduce to a quick "uh".

Listen: agora

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Sound it out

a Unstressed, at both the start and end of the word, reduces to a light "uh" sound.

go Stressed, open "aw" vowel, similar to English "gone".

r A single tapped "r", like the quick "tt" sound in American English "butter", not a rolled or English "r".

Hear it in a sentence

Estou a trabalhar agora.

I am working now.

Listen: Estou a trabalhar agora.

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"Estou a trabalhar agora" (I am working now) uses the EU Portuguese progressive construction "estar a + infinitive" ("a trabalhar") to express an ongoing action — this is the single biggest grammatical difference from Brazilian Portuguese, which instead uses the gerund "estou trabalhando". Recognizing "estar a + infinitive" is essential for understanding authentic European Portuguese speech and media.

Where English speakers slip

Because Brazilian Portuguese uses "-ndo" gerunds so heavily in media, learners are often confused hearing "a trabalhar" instead and may not recognize it as the progressive tense at all. On pronunciation specifically, the tapped single "r" in "agora" is often replaced by an English-style "r", when it should be a very quick flick of the tongue tip.