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How to Say ‘Lisbon is the capital.’ in Portuguese

Lisboa é a capital.

leez-BOH-ah eh ah kah-pee-TAHL

[leez-BOH-ah eh ah kah-pee-TAHL]

💬 Usage Tip: Lisbon is used without a "the", unlike o Porto. In everyday speech it squeezes down to about (leezh-BOH-uh).

Phrase Breakdown

Lisboa é

leez-BOH-ah eh

Lisbon is

The 's' in 'Lisboa' before 'b' sounds like 'zh': 'leezh-BOH-uh'. 'é' means 'is' and has an open 'eh' sound.

Example

Lisboa é linda.

Lisbon is beautiful.

Words in this phrase

Lisboa

[leez-BOH-ah]

Lisbon

Capital of Portugal; a frequent destination from Porto by train.

Example

Chego a Lisboa ao fim da tarde.

I arrive in Lisbon at the end of the afternoon.

[eh]

Form of the verb 'ser' used to identify or state something.

Example

É meu interesse conhecer melhor a empresa.

It is my interest to get to know the company better.

a capital.

ah kah-pee-TAHL

the capital.

'a' is the feminine 'the'. Stress the last syllable: 'kuh-pee-TAHL', with a dark 'l' at the end.

Example

Visitei a capital.

I visited the capital.

Words in this phrase

[ah]

the (feminine singular)

Same article "a" used before a feminine noun; often unstressed in speech.

Example

A estação é ali à direita.

The station is right there on the right.

capital

[kah-pee-TAHL]

capital

The main city of a country, where the government is.

Example

Madrid é a capital de Espanha.

Madrid is the capital of Spain.

Guides for Portuguese learners

The Portuguese You Actually Need in Your First Month in PortugalThe European Portuguese phrases for your first weeks in Portugal: paperwork, renting a flat, the bank, the health centre, cafés, trains and your new neighbours.

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