Portuguese (Portugal) · Pronunciation Guide

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

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

grande is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written ˈɡɾɐ̃.dɨ. It means “big.” Sounds like "GRAHN-d", with the nasal "an" pushed through your nose and a nearly silent final "e" — almost "grãd".

Sounds like "GRAHN-d", with the nasal "an" pushed through your nose and a nearly silent final "e" — almost "grãd".

grande ˈɡɾɐ̃.dɨ

Stress falls on the only full syllable, GRAN; the final "e" is so reduced in Lisbon speech it almost disappears.

Listen: grande

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Sound it out

gr Like English "gr" in "grand" — a hard g plus a light tapped r, softer than an American r.

an A nasal vowel — say "ah" while letting air escape through your nose, like the French "an" in "grand".

de Barely pronounced — a quick, swallowed "duh" that almost vanishes, not a clear "day".

Hear it in a sentence

A casa é muito grande.

The house is very big.

Listen: A casa é muito grande.

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"A casa é muito grande" uses "muito" as an intensifying adverb meaning "very", modifying the adjective rather than the verb. "Grande" doesn't change form here even though "casa" is feminine, because it's one of the Portuguese adjectives that has the same ending for both genders. Word order (noun then adjective) is the default pattern in Portuguese.

Where English speakers slip

English speakers often pronounce the final "e" as a full "eh" sound, but in European Portuguese it should almost disappear into a light "duh". Brazilian speakers tend to keep a fuller, more open final vowel and a less nasal "an", so if you've picked up Portuguese from Brazilian media, dial both of those back.