Portuguese (Portugal) · Pronunciation Guide

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

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

minuto is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /miˈnutu/. It means “minute.” Say "mee-NOO-too", with the stress clearly on the middle syllable and both "u" sounds staying a clean "oo".

Say "mee-NOO-too", with the stress clearly on the middle syllable and both "u" sounds staying a clean "oo".

minuto /miˈnutu/

Stress falls on the second syllable "nu"; the surrounding vowels stay relatively clear here since "i" and "u" don't reduce as dramatically as unstressed "a"/"e"/"o" do.

Listen: minuto

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Sound it out

mi A clear "mee" sound; unstressed "i" in Portuguese stays close to "ee" rather than reducing much further.

nu The stressed syllable, a crisp "noo" with a dental "n" and a full, clear "oo" vowel.

to Unstressed final "o" closes to a short "oo", following the regular European Portuguese pattern for word-final "o".

Hear it in a sentence

Espera só um minuto.

Wait just a minute.

Listen: Espera só um minuto.

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"Espera só um minuto" means "Wait just a minute", with "minuto" as a regular masculine noun and "um" as the masculine indefinite article. "Espera" is the informal imperative (command form) used with someone you'd address as "tu", making this a casual, everyday request rather than a formal one — the formal imperative would use a different verb ending.

Where English speakers slip

Because "minuto" looks and sounds close to its English cognate "minute", learners often import English stress and vowel quality, stressing the first syllable ("MIN-yoot") instead of the correct middle-syllable stress "mi-NU-to". Watch also that the final "o" closes to "oo" rather than trailing off as a fuller "oh", which would sound distinctly non-native.