Basic expressions: Greeting someone and apologizing for being late
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Key Phrases
Desculpa o atraso.
Sorry for being late.
Como foi o teu dia?
How was your day?
Obrigado pela tua paciência.
Thank you for your patience.
Skills You'll Learn
Apologising for being late
Pedir desculpa por chegar atrasado
Asking and answering how someone is
Perguntar e responder sobre como alguém está
Talking about your day and thanking someone politely
Falar sobre o teu dia e agradecer com educação
Lesson Roleplay
Imagine you have arrived a little late to meet a Portuguese friend or classmate, and you are having a polite, friendly conversation before going inside.
Olá! Desculpa o atraso.
Hello! Sorry for being late.
Olá, Emily ! Não faz mal.
Hello, Emily! No problem.
Estás bem?
Are you okay?
Sim, estou bem. E tu?
Yes, I'm fine. And you?
Estou bem, obrigado.
I'm fine, thank you.
Lesson Vocabulary & Phrases
Olá!
oh-LAH
Hello!
💬 In Portugal, the final [a] in [Olá] is very light, so it often sounds closer to (oh-LAH) than a full English [ah].
See breakdown →Desculpa
desh-KOOL-pah
Sorry
🇵🇹 [Desculpa] is informal, for friends, family, classmates, or colleagues you know well. With strangers or in more formal situations, people often use [Desculpe].
See breakdown →O atraso
oo ah-TRAH-zoo
The delay
💬 In [o atraso], [o] means [the]. Portuguese often uses the article where English drops it, so compare [o teu dia] = [your day].
See breakdown →Desculpa o atraso.
desh-KOOL-pah oo ah-TRAH-zoo
Sorry for being late.
🇵🇹 This is a natural, everyday apology for arriving late. It sounds a bit warmer and more personal than just [desculpa].
See breakdown →Não faz mal.
nowng fahsh mahl
No problem.
🇵🇹 A very common reassuring reply to an apology in Portugal. It means more like [it's okay] than literally [it doesn't matter].
See breakdown →Estás bem?
esh-TASH bayng
Are you okay?
💬 [Estás] is the [you] form used with [tu]. With [você], the same verb would be [está]: [Está bem?].
🇵🇹 In Portugal, [Estás bem?] is informal. With someone you don't know well, [Está bem?] is usually safer.
See breakdown →Sim
seeng
Yes
Estou bem
esh-TOH bayng
I am fine
💬 Portuguese often drops the subject word [eu] when the verb already shows who it is. So [Estou bem] naturally means [I am fine] without needing [eu].
See breakdown →Sim, estou bem.
seeng esh-TOH bayng
Yes, I'm fine.
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