The Portuguese Alphabet: Letters, Sounds, and Accent Marks
All 26 letters of the Portuguese alphabet, the accented characters that change pronunciation, and how Brazilian and European pronunciation differ for each letter.
Last updated May 20, 2026.
The Portuguese alphabet has 26 letters, exactly like the English alphabet. The pronunciation rules and the accent marks are where things get interesting.
The 26 letters
| Letter | Name (Brazilian) | Name (European) |
|---|---|---|
| A | á | á |
| B | bê | bê |
| C | cê | cê |
| D | dê | dê |
| E | é | é |
| F | éfe | éfe |
| G | gê | gê |
| H | agá | agá |
| I | i | i |
| J | jota | jota |
| K | cá | cá |
| L | éle | éle |
| M | éme | éme |
| N | éne | éne |
| O | ó | ó |
| P | pê | pê |
| Q | quê | quê |
| R | érre | érre |
| S | ésse | ésse |
| T | tê | tê |
| U | u | u |
| V | vê | vê |
| W | dáblio | duplo vê |
| X | xis | xis |
| Y | ípsilon | ípsilon |
| Z | zê | zê |
K, W, and Y are mostly used in foreign words, scientific notation, and trademarks.
Vowels and their accents
Portuguese has five base vowels (A, E, I, O, U), each of which can carry several accents that change pronunciation.
Acute accent (´): open stressed vowel
Marks the stressed syllable with an “open” vowel quality:
- á like the A in English “father”
- é like the E in English “bet”
- í like the EE in English “feet” (always stressed)
- ó like the O in English “for”
- ú like the OO in English “boot” (always stressed)
Examples: café (CAH-feh), pó (paw), aí (ah-EE).
Circumflex (^): closed stressed vowel
Marks the stressed syllable with a “closed” vowel quality:
- â like the A in English “sofa”
- ê like the AY in English “say” without the glide
- ô like the O in English “go” without the glide
Examples: você (voh-SEH), avô (ah-VOH), três (treh-sh in EU PT, trayss in BR PT).
Tilde (~): nasal vowel
Marks a nasal vowel that doesn’t exist in English:
- ã nasal A, like the start of French “an”
- õ nasal O, like the French “on”
Examples: irmã (eer-MA̱), mão (mowng), pão (powng), limões (lee-MOYNGS).
The tilde plus the following letter create distinctive Portuguese sounds. The “-ão” ending in particular (verbs in third person plural, many singular nouns) is in roughly every other Portuguese sentence.
Grave accent (`): only on À
The grave accent appears only on the letter A, marking a contraction of the preposition “a” with the article “a” or with a feminine pronoun. It doesn’t change the vowel sound but it does change the grammar.
Example: “Vou à praia” = “I’m going to the beach” (contraction of “a” + “a praia”).
Cedilla (ç)
Below a C before A, O, or U, makes the C sound like an S instead of a K. Without the cedilla, “ca” sounds like “kah.” With the cedilla, “ça” sounds like “sah.”
Examples: cabeça (kah-BEH-sah), criança (kree-AHN-sah), açúcar (ah-SOO-kar).
Digraphs
Two letters that combine to make one sound:
- lh like the “lli” in “million” (or the Spanish ll). “Filho” (son) = “FEEL-yoh.”
- nh like the Spanish ñ. “Manhã” (morning) = “mah-NYANG.”
- ch like the SH in English “ship.” “Chá” (tea) = “shah.”
Letters that sound very different across varieties
| Letter / digraph | Brazilian | European |
|---|---|---|
| Initial R | soft like H (“hee-oh” for Rio) | guttural, like French R |
| Final S | usually S | ”sh” sound |
| D before i, e | soft “j” sound | hard D |
| T before i, e | soft “ch” sound | hard T |
| Unstressed vowels | fully pronounced | often dropped or barely voiced |
This is the single biggest source of confusion when crossing varieties.
How to practise
- Read the table above out loud, then do it again with a Brazilian or European audio reference.
- Add an Anki deck that includes audio for each letter and example word.
- Listen to short clips with subtitles and tag any words whose spelling surprised you when you heard them.
What to read next
- Brazilian vs European Portuguese: the deeper comparison of pronunciation rules.
- Numbers in Portuguese: start applying the alphabet to vocabulary.
- Hello in Portuguese: your first greetings, pronounced correctly.
- Best Anki Decks for Portuguese: decks with native audio for every letter.
Frequently asked
How many letters are in the Portuguese alphabet?
Twenty-six, same as English. The letters K, W, and Y were officially added back to the alphabet in the 2009 Orthographic Agreement (they had been excluded from the prior 23-letter version), so they now appear in foreign-origin words and trademarks.
What do the accent marks (á, à, â, ã) mean in Portuguese?
Acute (á, é, í, ó, ú) marks a stressed open vowel. Grave (à) marks a contraction of 'a' + 'a' and only appears on the letter A. Circumflex (â, ê, ô) marks a stressed closed vowel. Tilde (ã, õ) marks a nasal vowel. Cedilla (ç) gives the letter C a soft S sound before A, O, or U.
Does Portuguese have the letter ñ like Spanish?
No. Portuguese uses the digraph nh instead, which makes the same sound. So 'mañana' (Spanish) becomes 'manhã' (Portuguese). Don't write ñ in Portuguese text.
Why does the same letter sound different in Brazilian vs European Portuguese?
The two varieties share spelling but apply different pronunciation rules. The most dramatic differences are unstressed vowels (often dropped in European, fully pronounced in Brazilian) and the soft 'sh' sound at the end of syllables in European Portuguese.