Portuguese (Portugal) · Pronunciation Guide

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

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

ideia is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written [iˈdɐj.ɐ]. It means “idea.” Say "ee-DYE-uh", where the middle part sounds closer to English "dye" than to "day".

Say "ee-DYE-uh", where the middle part sounds closer to English "dye" than to "day".

ideia [iˈdɐj.ɐ]

Stress is on the middle syllable "deia" (really "dei"), and the key European quirk is that the diphthong "ei" is pronounced with a lowered starting vowel, closer to "ai" (as in "eye") than to the closed "ay" sound used in Brazilian Portuguese.

Listen: ideia

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Sound it out

i A short, clear, unstressed "ee" as in "machine".

dei A true dental "d" plus a diphthong that, in European Portuguese, sounds closer to the vowel in English "eye" than to "day" — this lowered "ei" is a signature feature of the Lisbon accent.

a Unstressed final "a" reduces to a light, quick central "uh".

Hear it in a sentence

Tenho uma ideia boa.

I have a good idea.

Listen: Tenho uma ideia boa.

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"Tenho uma ideia boa" means "I have a good idea." "Tenho" is the first-person present of ter (to have), and "uma ideia boa" shows the adjective boa (good) following the noun, as is standard word order for most descriptive adjectives in Portuguese, unlike English where the adjective comes first.

Where English speakers slip

Learners who've picked up Portuguese from Brazilian sources will pronounce "ei" as a closed "ay" sound, like English "day", giving something like "ee-DAY-uh". In European Portuguese this diphthong is lowered toward "ai" (as in "eye" or "aisle") — this same ei-lowering shows up in many other common words (like "seis", six) and is one of the clearest audible differences between Lisbon and Rio pronunciation.