Portuguese (Portugal) · Pronunciation Guide

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

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

cansado is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written kɐ̃.ˈsa.du. It means “tired.” Say "kung-SAH-doo", with a nasal first syllable and stress on "sa".

Say "kung-SAH-doo", with a nasal first syllable and stress on "sa".

cansado kɐ̃.ˈsa.du

Stress falls on "sa"; the first syllable "can" is nasalized rather than pronounced with a clear oral "a".

Listen: cansado

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Sound it out

can A nasal vowel, roughly like the vowel in English "cup" pushed through the nose, not the oral "a" of English "can".

sa The stressed syllable, a clear open "sah".

do A true dental "d" (never a soft "j" sound) with a short, reduced final "oo".

Hear it in a sentence

Estou cansado depois do trabalho.

I'm tired after work.

Listen: Estou cansado depois do trabalho.

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"Estou cansado depois do trabalho" uses "estar" since tiredness is a temporary physical state. "Cansado" must agree in gender with the speaker — a woman would say "cansada". "Depois de" (after) contracts with the article "o" to form "depois do trabalho" (after work), a common contraction pattern worth learning as a set phrase.

Where English speakers slip

English speakers often pronounce the first syllable "can" with a clear oral vowel close to English "con", but it should be nasalized, more like a nasal version of the vowel in "cup". This nasal quality is shared with Brazilian Portuguese, so the more EP-specific risk is over-pronouncing the final "o" as a full "oh" rather than the clipped "oo" Lisbon speakers use.