How to Say ‘Happy Birthday’ in Portuguese
Os parabéns
oosh puh-ruh-BAYNsh
[oosh puh-ruh-BAYNsh]
💬 Usage Tip: In European Portuguese, [dar os parabéns] and [cantar os parabéns] mean birthday congratulations / the birthday song. Don't read [parabéns] too literally as just "congratulations" here — in birthday contexts it often means the whole [Happy Birthday] idea.
Phrase Breakdown
Os
[oosh]
the
Masculine plural definite article, here used as part of a fixed expression.
Os parabéns costumam ser cantados no fim do jantar.
The birthday song is usually sung at the end of the dinner.
parabéns
[puh-ruh-BAYNsh]
birthday song / congratulations
In Portuguese, cantar os parabéns means to sing Happy Birthday; parabéns alone also means congratulations.
Queríamos cantar os parabéns à minha mãe.
We wanted to sing Happy Birthday to my mother.
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