Portuguese (Brazil) · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "a ilha" in Portuguese (Brazil)?

Q: How do you pronounce a ilha in Portuguese (Brazil)?

a ilha is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /a ˈi.ʎɐ/. It means “island.” ah EE-lyah. The lh is one palatal sound, and the article glides straight into the noun.

ah EE-lyah. The lh is one palatal sound, and the article glides straight into the noun.

a ilha /a ˈi.ʎɐ/

Nothing marked here: the first syllable takes it. Because lh is a single indivisible consonant for syllabification, the split is i-lha rather than il-ha, which keeps the stressed vowel in an open syllable and means the l never closes anything — so it can't vocalize to w.

Listen: a ilha

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Sound it out

a The feminine article, an open "ah" running directly into the noun's high "ee" with no break — two very different vowels sharing a single breath.

i A tense high "ee" carrying the stress. It's the only substantial vowel in the noun, so give it real length.

lha One palatal consonant, the tongue blade flat against the roof of the mouth — Spanish ll, Italian gli. The final a then lightens toward "uh." No l-release and no h.

Hear it in a sentence

Essa ilha é pequena.

This island is small.

Listen: Essa ilha é pequena.

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"Essa ilha é pequena" links three vowel-heavy words in a row: the demonstrative's raised final "ee," the noun's stressed "ee," and the open vowel of "é." "Pequena" then has a silent u after the q, so the sentence ends on plain, unremarkable syllables.

Where English speakers slip

"EEL-hah" with an audible l and h is the standard lh error, and it's especially tempting here because the word is so short that the consonant feels exposed. Go straight to the palatal position. Spanish speakers have "isla," which shares neither the lh nor the vowel structure.