Portuguese (Brazil) · Pronunciation Guide

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

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

sair is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /saˈih/. It means “to go out / to leave.” sah-EE. Two syllables, not one — the a and i do not form a diphthong here.

sah-EE. Two syllables, not one — the a and i do not form a diphthong here.

sair /saˈih/

The stress is on the i, and this is a case where the two adjacent vowels do not combine. Portuguese distinguishes a diphthong like "mais" from a hiatus like "sair," and the rule of thumb is that a stressed i or u after another vowel stands alone as its own syllable. Compare "saiu," "país" and "saúde," which all break the same way.

Listen: sair

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Sound it out

sa A hissed s and an open "ah." This syllable is unstressed and quick, which is exactly why learners try to swallow it into the next one.

ir A stressed high "ee" standing as its own syllable, with the r behind it dissolving. The key point is the break in front of it — the i does not glide off the preceding a.

Hear it in a sentence

Vamos sair para jantar.

Let's go out for dinner.

Listen: Vamos sair para jantar.

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"Vamos sair para jantar" would normally be spoken with "para" reduced to "pra," giving "vamos sair pra jantar." The r of "sair" then meets the p of "pra" with no vowel between them, so it stays silent — whereas if the next word began with a vowel it would firm up into a tap.

Where English speakers slip

The overwhelming error is squashing the word into one syllable, "SIGH-r," treating ai as the diphthong it is in "mais." It is not one here. The other confusion is with "ser": "sair" is to leave or go out, and mixing the two produces sentences that make no sense. Portuguese also uses "sair" for dating — "eles estão saindo" — which is not obvious from the base meaning.