In Portugal, autumn is the time for ! Across the Alentejo, Trás-os-Montes, and the Beiras, it’s already well under way. The harvest usually runs through November and December, but this year the hot summer ripened the fruit ahead of schedule. That’s not bad news, however. Olivum, the growers’ association, expects about 10% more than last […]

Details matter! These groups of “minimal pairs” help tune your ears to native Portuguese pronunciation. How many words can you identify correctly?

If you’ve spent any time in Portugal, you’ve probably met at least one Silva already. It’s not a coincidence: roughly 3% of the country carries that surname, with Santos, Ferreira, Pereira, and Costa not far behind. Many of the most common surnames come from the land people lived on: Costa – coast or slope Oliveira […]

Count to 20 in European Portuguese: slowly, then fast!

September 26th is , which is a good excuse to learn about another language spoken in Portugal that you may not be aware of. In the northeast corner of the country, in a small region called Terra de Miranda, people speak a language called . It’s not a dialect of Portuguese; in fact, it belongs […]

A woman calls a plumber to fix a dripping tap in her bathroom, then leaves a voicemail for her husband to update him on the situation.

We asked people on the streets of Lisbon what they think about Portugal’s minimum wage and whether it’s enough to live on. Features vocabulary around wages, cost of living, and housing, and common expressions for expressing opinions. Note: This was filmed before Portugal’s 2026 minimum wage update — as of January 2026 the minimum wage […]

Today we’re looking at something a little different: not Portuguese words you need to learn, but Portuguese words you already know. A number of English words can be traced back to Portuguese, having made their way into the language over centuries of trade and exploration. In most cases, English kept the word and quietly changed […]

After spotting their neighbour at a café across the street, Helena and Filipa get a bit nosy.

Who were the Lusitanians?

In this episode, Joel and Rui talk about how people greet each other in Portugal — cheek kisses, handshakes, that sort of thing — and the tricky business of actually leaving a party without it turning into a whole thing. They cover vocabulary like “está a ficar tarde,” “tenho que ir embora,” and “até à […]

Two friends chat about their struggles learning Portuguese.

In this episode, Joel and Rui compare how people interact with their neighbors in Portugal and Canada—everything from awkward elevator silence to strangers weighing in on what’s in your shopping bag. They go through some common Portuguese greetings and goodbyes like “bom dia,” “até logo,” “vai-se andando,” and “haja saúde,” and talk about when you’d […]

Ariana gets the job offer of her dreams!

Paulo and Tiago discuss what to bring to the beach for a full day in the sun. Vocabulary includes common beach items and phrases related to preparing for a day out.