Portuguese (Brazil) · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "morar" in Portuguese (Brazil)?

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

morar is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /moˈɾah/. It means “to live (somewhere).” moh-RAH. The middle r is a single tap, the final r is breath, and the stress is at the end.

moh-RAH. The middle r is a single tap, the final r is breath, and the stress is at the end.

morar /moˈɾah/

moh-RAH as an infinitive, MOH-roo in the present — and in that second form the unstressed final o raises to "oo," so the same vowel letter is "oh" when loud and "oo" when not, inside a single two-syllable word.

Listen: morar

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Sound it out

mo An m and a closed "oh." Unstressed, so it's quick, but the lips stay rounded and the vowel is clearly present.

rar One flick of the tongue tip for the first r, then the loud wide vowel, then a second r that is pure breath. Hearing the gap between the two is the whole point of this word.

Hear it in a sentence

Moro em Salvador.

I live in Salvador.

Listen: Moro em Salvador.

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"Moro em Salvador" uses the present tense and links "moro" straight into the nasal "em." "Salvador" has a vocalized l in the middle — "sow-vah-DOH" — and a breathy final r, so the city's name contains two of the most distinctive Brazilian consonant behaviours in one word.

Where English speakers slip

English speakers curl the middle r into something like "MORE-ar," which changes the syllable structure as well as the sound. It's one light tap. Spanish speakers reach for "vivir," and Portuguese does have "viver," but "morar" is what Brazilians use for living in a place, while "viver" leans toward being alive or living a certain way.