Portuguese (Portugal) · Pronunciation Guide

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

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

limpo is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written ˈlĩ.pu. It means “clean.” Say "LEEM-poo" with a nasal "i" — the vowel is pushed through the nose because of the following "m".

Say "LEEM-poo" with a nasal "i" — the vowel is pushed through the nose because of the following "m".

limpo ˈlĩ.pu

Stress falls on the first syllable; the "i" before "m" is nasalized, and the final "o" shortens to "oo".

Listen: limpo

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Sound it out

lim A nasal "i", similar to the nasal vowel in French "fin", not a plain oral "ee" followed by a hard m closure.

po An unaspirated "p" (softer than the puffed English p) followed by a short, reduced final "oo".

Hear it in a sentence

O quarto está limpo.

The room is clean.

Listen: O quarto está limpo.

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"O quarto está limpo" uses "estar" because cleanliness is a temporary, alterable condition of the room, not an inherent trait. "Quarto" here means "room" or "bedroom" in context, one of several meanings the word carries. This is a good, simple sentence pattern for describing household states.

Where English speakers slip

English speakers often pronounce "im" with a clear oral "ee" plus a fully-closed "m" consonant, as in English "limp", but Portuguese nasalizes the vowel itself, with the m mostly signaling nasalization rather than a hard closure. This nasal quality is consistent between EP and BP, so the EP-specific detail to focus on is the crisp, unaspirated p and the clipped final o, both softer and shorter than an English speaker's instinct.