Product Description
There's more to Portugal than bacalhau and porto, but how to get in deeper? Despite crazy rumors, you can't get drunk, speak French and expect to be understood in Portugal. Open this book and take the plunge - Portuguese is the key to an adventure of your own.

Our phrasebooks give you a comprehensive mix of practical and social words and phrases in more than 120 languages. Chat with the locals and discover their culture - a guaranteed way to enrich your travel experience.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Not so well organized phrasebook
Bought this phrasebook because I like the LP travel guides. It turns out being good in one does not guarantee you're good in the other. The organization of "situations" in which you need pecific words is not very logical and the priority given to various phrases is also odd. In the restaurant and café section I missed several basis phrases. In the restaurant mini-dictionary following phrases the situation was similar. I ended up not using this book and instead used my 20 year old portuguese-english mini dictionary. One of the vacations in which I learned the least about the local language.

Great travel book
If you really study the pronumciation examples and then use the phrases you'll go far!

Excellent reference that fits in your pocket
This is a wonderful little phrase book, which is handy, yet expansive (stretching beyond the simple "transport", "food" and "necessities", to go into suggested phrases for more esoteric areas including romantic encounters). The book also includes a short (but useful) dictionary at the end.

Beware, though, that the iPhone app by the same name(also by Lonely Planet), while more expensive, is far, far inferior, both in terms of usefulness and depth.

If you are travelling to Portugal (or Brazil, or any other Portugese-speaking country) grab the printed version (a week in advance, so you can read through it) and off you go.

good buy
good book, does just what it says it does. Not to learn the language, but great for traveling and quick reference.

If you're going to Portugal, this is the only book you'll need.
Lonely planet never fails to provide the best travel books. This tiny book provides a wealth of useful information. What I like about this book is that it focuses specifically on communicating in Portugal, rather than Brazil. It is well organized into several handy cagetories such as directions, shopping, lodging, etc. The front contains standard info such as numbers, days of the week, and survival phrases, while the back contains a mini-dictionary.

The best part about this book is the fact that it not only gives the Portuguese phrase with its English equivalent, it also provides a spelled-out phonetic pronunciation. Out of all the study material I have, these simple phonetic spell-outs have been the greatest help in my pronunciation, and I now have nearly perfected my portuguese accent.
I've seen similar Portuguese pocket books, and they just don't compare to this one. ... Read more

Product Description
This is the first comprehensive modern Portuguese grammar written for the English-speaking reader. The book covers in detail all the patterns of modern Portuguese as spoken and written in Brazil, focusing on those points which are especially challenging for the English-speaking student, such as the use of the subjunctive, use of the definite article, preterit vs. imperfect verb forms, prepositions, and many others. With a wealth of examples to clarify every topic and an extensive index, this indispensable grammar offers students and teachers easy access to all the information they need for in-depth study of Portuguese.Key features of the book: € focuses on the needs of the English-speaking reader€ incorporates the results of recent linguistic research in jargon-free language€ emphasizes modern spoken Brazilian usage€ describes current Brazilian pronunciation in detail€ devotes a separate chapter to spelling problems€ discusses trends of the modern spoken language ... Read more

Customer Reviews (25)

Great book for learning real conversational Portuguese
I taught myself Portuguese through reading books and talking to Brazilian penpals on the internet.I found this gem of a book in my college library one day and checked it out.I have to say, this book is the most useful book on spoken Portuguese I have encountered yet.I'm saving up to buy it as a reference for when I go to Brazil.
I would agree that this book might not be the best for learning how to speak formal Portuguese like "O Senhor, amanhã dar-lho-ai" or whatever crazy stuff you might find in a Bible from the 1800s.However, if I had not read this book, I would never be able to understand my Brazilian friends.Most textbooks don't really teach you how to understand and speak real Portuguese as it is actually spoken.For instance, I have seen some people complain that this book teaches you to combine "te" and "você" and that this is wrong.Wrong or not, this is how real people actually speak.In reality, people often don't even use proniminal clitics at all- instead of saying "O amo", which no one ever says to mean "I love you" (In fact, if you said that to someone, they would be confused about what you meant), people actually say "Eu te amo" which people here say is "incorrect" in their reviews- but even more grammatically incorrect- many people say "Eu amo você".Because of my knowledge of Spanish, unless I had read this book, I would have been horrified to hear people talk like this- but because I read this book, I learned that it was normal.
The reality is, few Brazilians actually know the "correct" way to speak their language, for instance, the language of the newspapers.That's because the language has changed and developed so much over time that the spoken language is vastly different from the formal written language.Many grammatical features that are essential to understanding Spanish or French are completely different in spoken Portuguese, and you need a book like this one to help you navigate the difference between the register they teach you in most textbooks and the language people speak on the street with their friends.
To summarize, if you want to learn the formal Portuguese of the João Ferreira Bible, or of 17th and 18th century poetry or writings, this book is not for you.I also wouldn't recommend this book for learning formal Portuguese for writing formal articles or publications.However, if you want to learn the Portuguese that is spoken in Brazil, and learn how to talk like and understand native, every day people, I would say this is the best book you could find.

No such thing as `sub-standard'
I would like to present a point of view in opposition to those below, which fault this book for presenting 'sub-standard' Portuguese. I believe this to be a value judgment based on a proscriptive school-marm position; one that is trying to defend a counter-factual linguistic reality in the face of the way Brazilians actually speak in day to day interactions. While it is important for language learners to be able to speak a so called standardized variety of any language (in the case of BP this would be the kind used in news programs, newspapers like O Globo, and some literary publications), the reality is that the language spoken by most people in their day to day lives is quite different from the language used in these circumstances. Since most people who want to learn a language want to learn it in order to communicate, it is important that they at least be aware for the differences between the written language, and the way it is spoken by people who use it everyday. To my mind, this book is a very useful tool for exactly that. The author is not inventing anything, he is simply presenting the language as it is spoken by a huge segment of the population in Brazil. Naturally, many of these same people are capable of reading newspapers and watching the news, but they just don't talk that way. As such, instead of faulting this book for not presenting a proscriptive grammar, I would like to instead suggest that this book be used as a descriptive guide to understanding Portuguese as it is spoken by many people in Brazil.

One of a kind for spoken Brazilian Portuguese
This book was a tremendous relief to find.I had searched high and low for a book that not only laid out Portuguese grammar with precision -- a hard find in itself -- but one that specifically addressed spoken Brazilian usage.Spoken Brazilian Portuguese is the language of my family, and I wanted a text that would help me brush up while avoiding preaching the formal Portuguese of mesoclitics and the pronouns "tu" and "vós."

The author's approach, which satisfies my needs perfectly, has been attacked here for elevating something akin to ghetto speech.I bristle at the suggestion that spoken Brazilian is unworthy of a serious linguistic study, and I won't stand for the gratuitous sideswipe at "uneducated South African speech" in an earlier review.There are plenty of books on the market that address literary Portuguese; we need at least one that will help those in search of an education in the vernacular of Brazil.This book does not deal with "street" or "uneducated" Portuguese; it examines the everyday language of a massive and important country, the study of which nobody should criticize.(For the record, this book does thoroughly cover literary Portuguese as well.)

This volume is well worth the cost.I can't recommend it enough.

Highly Recommended. Unorthodox, but gets the job done.
I bought this book a few years ago while I was in Spain studying Spanish and trying to teach myself Portuguese.I'm writing this review now because I feel like I can look at it objectively and give the pros and cons.

I still have an issue with how this book is organized, it seems sporadic to me.Especially since it is made to be a "reference grammar", it certainly goes back and forth quite a bit.This can be a good thing or a bad thing, because most other grammar books are pretty damn boring, but regardless, I find this book to be oddly organized.

The author does an excellent job of explaining a lot of the more complex parts of Portuguese grammar, this is without a doubt.There are plenty of accurate examples within the chapters.My only complaint about the way it is written is that he gets fairly subjective at times, which isn't good when you're trying to teach grammar.He tends to do this most when talking about modern use of the language, and while I respect and understand his credentials, I do think he generalizes and exaggerates a bit too much.

An example of this is when he says "it is becoming increasingly more common for Brazilian women and girls to say "obrigado" instead of "obrigada" because there is less emphasis on subject/adjective agreement" (I'm paraphrasing obviously).I have never once encountered a Brazilian female that says "obrigado"... and there numerous times in this book where he makes similar claims that I'm not so sure should be in a "reference grammar".

All in all, despite my small gripes, after studying this book on my own for a few months, without any real vocal examples or practice (he does a great job of explaining brazilian phonetics), I was able to jump right into advanced literature and grammar classes when I came back to the USA and understand, read, write and speak Portuguese.I eventually ended up with a Minor in Portuguese, and hopefully I will be teaching Spanish and Portuguese in a few months.Bottom line, this book certainly got the job done for me, and I highly recommend it.Just remember that it's written by one man, and at times he does get a bit subjective.

I am Brazilian and I have this book!
If you are really interested in learning Portuguese grammar, this book does a nice job. Very well written and showing both formal and informal constructions in Portuguese.

Do not even worry about what has been said against it.It is the sad side of some kind of prejudice against real language. In reality, some people in Brazil segregate according to how right one speaks Portuguese. Nevertheless, such people do not speak so well, but they think they do. And then they feel they have the right to laught at any other different variety of the language.

Language is something alive, dynamic, and so is Brazilian Portuguese, especially the spoken varieties.But if you are snobbish and rococo, well, try some Continental Portuguese Grammar.And enjoy the cod. ... Read more

Product Description
This brand new edition of the Oxford Portuguese Minidictionary offers up-to-date coverage of essential day-to-day vocabulary with over 40,000 words and phrases, and 60,000 translations.
The new phrasefinder feature provides an instant safety net when you travel, providing super fast access to all the words and expressions you need for everyday situations--shopping, traveling, asking for directions, or finding a place to stay. A brand-new menu-reader section has been added so you know exactly what you're getting to eat, and the new conversion charts for distance, weights and measures, and clothing and shoe sizes make travelling abroad easier than ever before. Also included in this edition are useful comparative notes on how European Portuguese differs from the Brazilian Portuguese featured in the dictionary.
All of these features are packed into a pocket-sized, durable format with a hard-wearing vinyl cover, making these dictionaries ideal for business people, holiday makers, and travelers, as well as the general user. The Oxford Minidictionary is your perfect mini-guide to understanding foreign languages. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

An excellent pocket dictionary - includes Brazilian words
A fat little dictionary about the size of two wallets, stuffed with English to Portuguese and vice-versa.Includes at least some Brazilian Portuguese words (like abacaxi (pineapple, slang for problem) and bagunca (a messy situation)).Recommended for the traveler - small print; for those who wear reading glasses - you'll need them.Recommended. ... Read more

Product Description

Modern Brazilian Portuguese Grammar: A Practical Guide is an innovative reference guide to Brazilian Portuguese, combining traditional and function-based grammar in a single volume.

The Grammar is divided into two parts. Part A covers traditional grammatical categories such as agreement, nouns, verbs and adjectives. Part B is carefully organized around language functions covering all major communication situations such as:

• establishing identity
• making contact
• expressing likes, dislikes and preferences.

With a strong emphasis on contemporary usage, all grammar points and functions are richly illustrated with examples. Main features of the Grammar include:

• clear, jargon-free explanations
• emphasis on the language as it is spoken and written today
• extensive cross-referencing between the different sections.

A combination of reference grammar and practical usage manual, Modern Brazilian Portuguese Grammar is the ideal resource for learners of Brazilian Portuguese at all levels, from beginner to advanced.

John Whitlam is a freelance writer, university lecturer and lexicographer based in Rio de Janeiro. He has authored a number of language teaching books and project coordinated and co-authored three of the best-selling bilingual dictionaries of Portuguese and English.

Product Description
Take Off In Portuguese makes learning or brushing up on your Portuguese quick, easy, and fun. Follow an integrated course including activities and dialogues with native speakers so you can feel confident in day-to-day conversation. The course offers expert help when you are travelling with mp3 audio download for practice while on the move.

This complete language learning kit contains everything you need to speak, read, write and understand Portuguese, and gives you flexibility when learning. The pack includes a clear, easy-to-use coursebook, full mp3 audio available to download, and 4 audio CDs to support you as you pick up your new language. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

I found this very effective
This is my second time using Oxford's "Take Off" series (previously I used "Take Off in Japanese"), and I found it effective for my needs. I was planning a trip to Brazil and ordered this product 4 weeks before I left, but was only able to thoroughly go through just over half the course. Despite this, I was able to communicate in Portuguese without any previous experience, ask for directions, order food, negotiate with drivers, etc. It made my travel experience much more enjoyable.

This course seems geared toward Portuguese spoken in Portugal, not Brazil, and while there is a small description of some of the differences in the introduction, I wish it had pointed out differences as you go along in the text (especially since most of the world's Portuguese speakers are in Brazil).

Oxford Take Off in Portuguese
This set of instuction book and cd's are very user friendly. The segments on the cd's are divided well and are easy to sort through for reviewing and practicing pronounciation. The "instuctor" on the cd's has an easy to listen to voice pitch and a very slight but easy to understnad accent with excellent diction. The man and woman who provide the dialog and other word examples are also clear in their pronunciations and are easy to follow. What began as an individual interest and effort to learn Portuguese and use this product has become grown to include my roommate and another friend. I would highly recommend this product to anyone interested in learning Portuguese, whether you've had a class or two in the past or are just beginning your learning adventure. The only thing missing is the lack of a full English-Portuguese/Portuguese-English dictionary, but that is easily obtainable. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Seminal work
This book is out of print and must be sought in libraries (often university)and second hand book dealers. If you can find it to buy-do so. It is a well-written, detailed account of the Iberic languages, beginning in the ancient world with a latin base influenced by Basque (a fellow, non-Romance Iberic language),ancient Germanic dialects,arabic and the modern French and English languages(e.g."El Esmokin":tuxedo). The amateur might be initially lost within Entwistle's references to yods,bi-labials and fricatives (the mechanics of speaking that influence [mis]pronounciation).Again, this book is a must-have for anyone wishing to study the origins of this sub-group of languages, one of which (Spanish)has grown enormously in influence since this book was originally published in the 1930s. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (18)

tiny

The picture may not tell you that since, in the picture, there is no other object to compare the dictionary with. But be warned: this is a tiny dictionary for people with exceptionally good eyesight.

Good Dictionary
It's a good book for intermediate to advanced speakers of portugeuse. It is useful for looking up words you don't understand for intermediate and beginners alike. However, if using it to put together new phrases, it can be confusing for beginners who don't understand all the different ways the phrases can be constructed.

Good Little Dictionary, Has a lot Info for a Small Dictionary
I used this dictionary when I was teaching myself Portuguese. It is definitely not the best there is, but it's very good considering its size and portability.

I especially like how it highlights both Lusitanian and Brazilian Portuguese. Although I don't like how it uses mainly British English. That makes it hard for American students to look up a word. I think it would've benefitted more from having both American and British English listed.

One of the best things about this dictionary is its portability. It's so small, it can fit in your coat pocket without a proble. Another thing I like is its pronunciation guide at the beginning, complete with IPA.

A very useful tool to your Portuguese mastery. I also recommend "Essential Portuguese Grammar" to go along with this dictionary.

Brandon Simpson

So so...
This is more European Portuguese, so keep that in mind. Super small and good for travel, but I didn't get much use out of it. Just being honest.

Best available, but not perfect
I've owned a Collins gem Portuguese dictionary since the 1970's.I have carried it for years when I needed it.I have worn off half the cover from use. (Yet the binding is still intact, and there are no loose pages, so you know it is of good quality.)The 4th edition is the current edition.

Having used all the various editions, and still using them all as I keep one in various places at home/office etc., I can compare the strengths and weaknesses.

First of all, the Collins gem dictionary is the best portable dictionary around.I have used or examined all of the others and thrown or given them away because the Collins is the best.It is written clearly, has the most words, and contains as much information as possible for a small book.It is truly pocket size, meaning it will fit in your shirt pocket.Over the years it has gotten a little thicker due to more words, more definitions of each word, and thicker paper.I personally think it's about a half inch too thick to be really comfortable in my shirt pocket, but unless you can find an older, thinner version with the onion skin paper, this is the best you can do.I do have concern that the newer, thicker paper might not wear as well.The onion skin paper seems to hold up better in my 50 year old Bible, and I wonder if this new paper will be as durable.(I guess I'll find out in another 30-50 years)

This edition (4th) has a plasticized cover so it won't break down like my 30 year old copy.It also has more entries under each word.For example, a common verb like the English "run" has dozens of definitions. It would be impossible to list them all in a pocket dictionary, but the latest editions have more than the earlier editions.This makes it more likely to get an accurate translation of a word.This edition also has better explanatory pages listing verb conjugations and the like.Unless you could already conjugate "ser" - "to be" - how would you otherwise know that "seja", "fui", and "foram" were all forms of "ser"?However, the dictionary still only lists "see verb ser" under these conjugations.There is plenty of room on the line next to "fui" to define it ("I was") rather than just refer to another page.But it continues to improve over the years.

For more formal translation work, or to use on archaic literature, I use a more complete dictionary - Novo Michaelis.Its 2 volumes are about 18 inches thick and anything but portable, however.

I recommend getting books from the US or Europe, rather than Brazil.Brazil, though fairly literate, has the lowest number of bookstores in the developed world per capita.This lack of a market means that the in-country publications are of poor quality and poorly edited and proofread.I rarely saw books in a Brazilian home unless they were schoolbooks, sciptures, pornography or in a teacher or intellectuals house.Lately, Brazilian publishers have taken to just publishing crooked photocopies that are often unreadable in their books and it can be difficult to even find a brand new book that doesn't already have a broken binding or loose pages.

For travel, or ordinary translation needs, this will serve quite well, and though I am quite fluent in Portuguese, I still use this most often when I need help to translate some literary word I have forgotten or never learned.Highly recommended from this user of 30 years. ... Read more

Product Description
A comprehensive, flexible, and up-to-date vocabulary reference and teaching tool for English language learning. The Oxford Picture Dictionary and its components create a highly teachable programme that can be used as a complete, four-skills beginning course, or as a language development supplement and practical reference. NEW Grammar Activity Book ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

remarquable
un dictionnaire illustré remarquable, mettant en situation toutes les circonstances de la vie : à l'hôpital, à l'école, au tribunal etc...
Tient compte de la spécificité du portugais du Brésil...une somme de vocabulaire dans un contexte didactique idéal : indispensable

One of the best picture dictionaries out there!
I own three Portuguese picture dictionaries (even though I am an adult), and this was by far, the best one. I find it easier to learn a foreign language when I can associate the word with an image/picture. On top of that, it's almost like reading a children's book... which makes learning a foreign language so much more enjoyable.I highly recommend this book!

The Oxford Picture Dictionary, English/Brazilian Portuguese
The dictionary along with its associated workbook are excellent tools for teaching English to Portuguese speakers.

Excelent Dictionary
I like this Dictionary! I undestood all words and pictures. But, it needs upgrade yet.

The Oxford Pictionary: English-Brazilian Portuguese Edition
The book was in excellent condition.I am using it now, and my students are benefitting greatly from it.
Thank you,
Ellen M. George ... Read more

Product Description
The English/Brazilian Portuguese version of the second edition of the best-selling and well loved Oxford Picture Dictionary, features over 4,000 words and phrases in both languages illustrated with all new vibrant, crystal-clear artwork. The topics, based on extensive input from teachers and students, have been thoroughly updated to meet the needs of today's English language learners.The new bilingual editions havecomplete second language indexes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Designed for native Portuguese speakers!
I think that the most important facet to keep in mind when considering this book is that it is clearly designed for Brazilian Portuguese speakers to learn English and not so much the other way around. As you can see from "Looking Inside" the book there are great pictures with the translations included, and as another reviewer pointed out, the book will give you the names for many objects which you might not get in another dictionary. HOWEVER, the pronunciation guides are for the English words and there is no pronunciation guide for the Portuguese words! This made it impossible for me, as a relatively new Brazilian Portuguese speaker, to figure out how to pronounce many of the Portuguese words. Furthermore, all of the learning activities, including stories to translate, are in English. Ie., "Practice spelling the days of the week. Monday: M-O-N-D-A-Y" It seems like other native English speakers found this book helpful but I just found it maddening.

Excelent book!
This book is very good for begginers, because is all ilustrated and easy to read. Provide a pleasant lecture.

so fun to study
Wow, what a cool dictionary. And what a fun way to study. There are so many scenarios. I think I will take this with me lots of places as well as study at home. We are moving to Brazil soon and I need to get started studying Portuguese. This will be a wonderful help.

A MUST HAVE FOR INTERMEDIATE OR ADVANCED BR. PORTUGUESE LEARNERS!
Its so hard to find GOOD Brazilian Portuguese language resources... If you're struggling to find a definitive textbook/guide or if you simply want to take your vocabulary to the next level: THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU!

This book and "How to say anything in Portuguese" (which is out of print, I believe, making it VERY expensive on Amazon but totally worth paying $40-50 for a serious student of the language)are simply the two BEST resources for learning Portuguese. I would say I am an intermediate level student.I know all the basics for food, household items, clothese, etc, but since I live part-time in Brazil, I need to take my vocabulary to the level of fluency.

The book is clearly organized with sections on nearly every aspect of daily life from "travel" to "food/cooking" to "technology" to "mailing letters/packages" to "Family reunions" to "fixing/buying a car"this book has everything.The labeling and organizing of the book isn't even the best part-- its the great, highly detailed drawings to accompany and identify the great specific terms it offers.For someone who need to communicate in real life situations, you need to know how to go to a computer repair store and say specific terms like "usb port" or "external harddrive"OR go to a grocery store and decipher the labels in Portuguese that identify the different types of meats and cheeses (Halibut, swiss cheese, rainbow trout!)OR pick up a perscription medicine and read the directions, ie "take with a meal"OR say to a tailor that you need your pants hemmed or let out.For the serious student, you need this reference around just in case you need to say "Parking garage""health insurance card" "Orthodontist""Frying pan" or "Community college" or a host of other words a part of daily life you won't find in a translation dictionary.

That being said, this book would be nice if youre a beginner to the language or aren't seeking fluency, but it could definitely be overwhelming and isn't necessary at that level of learning.But for someone seeking fluency, someone who travels to Brazil often, or someone who is going to live in Brazil, this book should be a required reading!

*** UPDATE:This book works both ways for Brazilians learning English and for English-Speakers learning Brazilian Portuguese.However, you can tell the original intention of the book was for BRAZILIANS to learn ENGLISH.I realized that after studying the book a while because I noticed many words/concepts are American and don't have an equivalent in Brazil (ie: Donut shop, Diner) however, the book does not contain Brazilian items not found in the US (ie Acerola, Graviola, CPF).In addition, the book has a small section of discussion questions to converse about and these are all in English, covering basic English concepts, with no Portuguese translation.

Also, I have found that the Portuguese words in the book always use the Sao Paulo preferred term rather than the term from other regions such as Rio (ie, in Sao Paulo bus stops are Parada de onibus, but in Rio they are Ponto de onibus.)But these are justoccasional words.

Brilliant!
My sixyears old boy has just learned to read and write, in brazilian portugues, an he sleeps embraced to the book. Is it necessary to say more? ... Read more

Product Description
A New Look At Language

Customer Reviews (17)

Best Portuguese / English Dictionary to use in Angola!
I have been working on a rotational assignment to Angola, Africa.Their first language is Portuguese, but it is very different from the Portuguese that is spoken in Brazil and in Portugal.I have bought several dictionaries over the years, but this one is by far the closest to the Portuguese that is spoken in Angola.I have bought many of this brand and will continue to do so while I am working there.Typically I take 12 back with me each time I go back for my rotation and give them to people that I have met as part of my "pay it forward" program.I LOVE This dictionary.Thank you!

Looks like the publishers have addressed the binding problem!
I've seen the edition that the picture depicts, and the binding is very flimsy, however the copy that was shipped to me looked a bit different, and had a MUCH more reinforced binding. I'm just so incredibly happy with this book!

The breadth of vocab is just amazing for a learners dictionary, and even better, the words are ALL defined in context! Oh, it's just so wonderful. This is like a linguist's wet dream come true.

Great Source of help
This is a great book.While it is a little larger than I would want, it has everything I have needed while here studying abroad in Brazil.It has helped me in my school work and with learning new words.Definitely would recommend it.

Just a reprint
This looks just like a reprint of the Harper Collins Portuguese Dictionary, which states that it has "over 80000 entries" and is copyrighted in 1991. Also, the binding looks very flimsy and the book may quickly fall apart.

Best Portuguese-English dictionary available
I have made 12 trips to Brazil since 1998 and have used this dictionary for most of them.Although a bit bulky for travel, it is truly encyclopedic in scope and nearly always provided me with the translation I need. A dictionary, of course, won't teach you grammar, and for that you need to look elsewhere.The dictionary is also unusually helpful in that it reflects Brazilian Portuguese as it is actually spoken, meaning that it has many slang and "dirty" words that many dictionaries won't include.

I agree with several of the reviewers that the binding is very poor and that the pages started to come loose after only moderate use.None of them have fallen out, although they are still loose and will fall out if I am not careful.This is definitely a flaw that the publishers should correct. ... Read more

Product Description
Vest pocket ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Good Enough Portuguese-English Dictionary
I bought this dictionary to help me in my Portuguese short course before I travel as well as to use on the trip. So far it has had an entry for everything I looked for but, obviously, there was no practical way to see if it has all the words I will ever need. I wish it had been published on thinner paper so that the entire book would fit better in a pocket. I have a German-English and a Spanish-English that are smaller and thinner. There is no reasonable way to know if they contain the vocabulary this one does. However, this is small enough and will be OK if I carry it in my camera bag or have cargo pants with fatter pockets. Overall I recommend the book.

Great book for modest needs
This bilingual dictionary's two greatest virtues are its compact yet readable format and its affordable price. As a bonus, there are brief lists of common words and phrases at the front and back. And, to make it useful in the field, this readily fits many pockets. Best, its plastic slipcover will protect it when your pocket turns sweaty, as it so often will in the countries where Portuguese predominates. This meets my limited needs, as someone who comes across the occasional Portuguese word in passing. Many high school language students will also find that it has all the vocabulary they need. This isn't a scholar's reference, though. Translated definitions tend towards the terse, so they won't cover all usages of a term. It offers plenty if you don't need much, and that's good enough for me right now.

//wiredweird

Excellent Pocket Dictionary
I compared this pocket dictionary with the much larger Larousse Portuguese-English, English-Portuguese Dictionary and found that the small pocket Random House often offers much better translations. For example, Larousse translates "naftalina" as "naphthaline" (not very helpful!), while the Random House gives "moth balls." Larousse says that "namoro" is "relationship" (leading the reader to think that it could be any relationship), while Random House translates it as "going steady" (much clearer!). Meter o nariz in Larousse is "to stick one's nose in" (which it what it literally means), but Random House gives "to meddle" (much more concise and to the point). For narigudo Larousse tells us "with a large nose," but Random House gives us an adjective we can put in a sentence: big-nosed. For narcotráfico, Larousse gives "drug traffic" while Random House gives "drug smuggling" (I find the latter easier to understand). All in all, a bargain at $6.95, and small enough to carry in your vest pocket. Congratulations to the author, Bobby J. Chamberlain, at the University of Pittsburgh.

Wonderful Travel-Sized Dictionary
I lead trips to the Amazon and this is the best dictionary I've found. It is lightweight, can be carried around in a pocket and has had every word I've needed to look for. I now have two and may give one as a gift to my Brazilian boat crew. Highly recommended!

Outstanding
I'm a freelance Portuguese-to-English translator and consider myself quite proficient in Brazilian Portuguese. On that basis, I can only offer praise for this dictionary. It's wonderfully comprehensive, as good as dictionaries that are physically much bulkier. It's delightful to find, in a work this size, words such as "chafurdar" (to wallow in the mud). I used this dictionary on a recent trip while reading Bernardo Carvalho's 1998 novel "Teatro" and found that it had a definition for every obscure word I didn't know. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The best starter Portuguese book for Children!!!
This book goes through a variety of situations that is a great starter for children.I used this as the first book for my son and it was a great starter book that has allowed my son to become fluent as a 2 year old. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (10)

EXCELLENT EXCELLENT EXCELLENT!!!
WOW!I cannot begin to tell you how great this book is.I think of all the language books I have come across (and that is alot since I am a linguist), this is by far one of the best if not the best explanations of a language from beginning through other points of grammar, tenses etc.Plenty of excercises and lots of great vocabulary.VERY DETAILED section on the pronunciation at the beginning on both how it is pronounced in Portugal as well as in Brazil.If a word is different in Brazil it will let you know as well.Everything is very clearly described. I bought this book to learn Portuguese since I am already fluent in Spanish and I was amazed how fast I picked Portuguese up.Also even if you have no knowledge of Spanish you will still easily learn Portuguese from this book.In less than a month of studying about 3-4 hours a day, I was able to communicate with people from Portugal/Brazil with little problems :)Again a job well done with this book.It proves the saying "oldie but goodie" :)

Great little book
Many others have said it much more eloquently, but this is a great little starter book. I've found that sometimes the best books for instructing are those that are a little on the "dated" side and tend to go more indepth than modern books.

I purchased this book so that it might help me understand sentence structure and thus help me decipher a much older work that is written in Medieval Portuguese. It has helped, along with online references.

So, if you're interested in learning Portuguese, this is a good place to start.

Just What I Needed
My son is living in Portugal and so is speaking European Portugese. He requested a grammar book and this one is fit all his requirements. It is small, lightweight, and he says it it is just what he needed.

Excellent Reference
Although this book is old (being originally published in 1942) and a little (very little!) out-of-date (see NOTE below), it is an excellent reference for the student of European Portuguese. This wee tome focuses primarily on European Portuguese, in stark contrast to the plethora of Brazilian Portuguese references on the market which treat European Portuguese as nothing more than a footnote. When a friend in Portugal learned that I had purchased this book, they went out and purchased it themselves, to be sure I had bought a good and accurate reference. I was told that I had.

Highly recommended for the student of European Portuguese!

(NOTE: Item 20, "Nasal Dipthongs", found on page 7, discusses briefly a change in the language that did not occur subsequent to the publication of this book. Aside from that, this is a great reference book!)

Complete Explanation of the Grammar
This is not a bad little book - don't be deceived by its thin size. It covers Portuguese grammar completely, including those thorny items that Spanish students have trouble with when taking on Portuguese, like the personal infinitive, the pluperfect and the future subjunctive. It even covers the proper rules for accents in the orthography, and I have rarely seen that even attempted in any work designed for English speakers. What it doesn't provide you with is a lot of illustrative usages and examples, so as a stand-alone course it has its limitations. As one other reviewer says, use it in conjunction with other conversational materials, and you should be fine. ... Read more

Product Description

COLLOQUIAL PORTUGUESE OF BRAZIL is easy to use and completely up to date!

Specially written by experienced teachers for self-study or class use, the course offers you a step-by-step approach to written and spoken Portuguese of Brazil. No prior knowledge of the language is required.

What makes COLLOQUIAL PORTUGUESE OF BRAZIL your best choice in personal language learning?

Interactive – lots of exercises for regular practice

Clear – concise grammar notes

Practical – useful vocabulary and pronunciation guide

Complete - including answer key and reference section

By the end of this rewarding course you will be able to communicate confidently and effectively in Brazilian Portuguese in a broad range of everyday situations.

This pack contains the paperback and 120 minutes of audio material, recorded on CDs. Recorded by native speakers, these complement the book and will help you with your pronunciation and listening skills.

Customer Reviews (12)

Useful for intermediate learners
My impression from having bought quite a few of them is that these DIY language courses are often done on the cheap by people without pedagogical backgrounds. For a beginner without any prior knowledge of a language, it's crucial that material is introduced slowly and deliberately, giving the learner time to absorb grammar and vocabulary. Doubly so if he/she is learning on their own. Unfortunately, few if any of the Colloquial or Teach Yourself titles aspire to meet any kind of pedagogical standard.

After a failed attempt at learning Portuguese using this course last year, I made another attempt this year with the help of Routledge's excellent "Portuguese - An Essential Grammar" and some Brazilian friends. The results have been good so far - I can hold a conversation and read beginner-level texts after about six months of learning.

Returning to this course, I can now appreciate the lessons and dialogs more fully since I have a foundation in vocabulary and grammar to build from. As a reference it is actually quite useful, and I see now that the authors wrote the book with good intentions, even though they may have fallen short of their expectations.

Made for parrots, not language learners
This is the same course as the one called Colloquial Portuguese, but while that one is for European Portuguese, the content in this course has been adjusted to Brazilian Portuguese. Unfortunately, the authors did not address the major drawback in their previous cours: no wordlists.

For some reason, quite a few of the authors in the Colloquial series seem to be under the false impression that providing English translations of the dialogues is a satisfactory substitute for listing the new words. I disagree 100%. There are no languages that can be translated word by word into English and the result of this is that you end up not knowing which words in Portuguese that corresponds to a given English word.

The result of this is that you can memorize the phrases in this book like a parrot, but that won't get you any far and is no better than a much cheaper and more extensive phrasebook. As you're not given the chance to learn and repeat new words, you simply won't be able to construct sentences on your own. This makes the book rather unhelpful for learners. Look for Teach Yourself Portuguese instead. The cover is not as nice, but the content is much better with proper word-lists in each lesson, more extensive explanations and full coverage of the differences between European and Brazilian Portuguese.

it's not colloquial at all
From a book that has ''Colloquial Portuguese of Brazil'' in its title you would expect something focusing more on colloquial, oral usage. But, this book got it all wrong: the focus is more on formal, written style that is close to Continental Portuguese and it's too formal for a colloquial style of Brazil (comparing it with English, it's like teaching you stuff like: It is I, or Whom shall we invite? It's too formal/bookish!). So, avoid it at any cost. The book 2 of this course is even weirder!

Colloquial Portuguese of Brazil
Very helpfl book if you already have knoledge of Portuguese.Personally, I think the conversation on the CD's are very fast for someone who's trying to learn Portuguese as a begginer.I consider they should speak more slowly on the first lessons, at least.
Over all, it's very helpful.

One of my favorites.
I wouldn't say that this course is for a total beginner. If you've already got some knowledge of the language (or if you've studied a different Romance language before and have an idea of how the grammar and syntax works), then this would be an excellent choice. It's a little intimidating at first -- the dialogues are almost all spoken at everyday speed, but this will help you develop an ear for what you'll really be hearing from native speakers. Each lesson includes dialogues, grammar notes, and exercises to test what you've learned. A small reference section at the end of the book includes grammar notes, an answer key to the exercises, and a short two-way dictionary of vocabulary used throughout the book.

For someone who already has a good foundation in the language, this is an excellent resource. Each lesson is themed for specific situations and includes vocabulary pertaining to each theme (eating out, travelling, using the Internet, etc.), and the accompanying audio, although not perfect, is accurate in portraying the intonation and speed of native speakers. This course can be your best friend if you know how to use it to its potential.

The dialogues, though plentiful, are short. There are a few reading texts scattered throughout, but these are also surprisingly short. On top of this, the review of the pronunciation guide is different from what's in the book; the book lists each letter and how it's pronounced, example words included, but the audio goes through the alphabet with different example words that a beginner won't know.

If this course seems too much at first, try something a little easier. "Living Language Portuguese : The Basics" also focuses on Brazilian Portuguese and would be a great start in learning the language. There's also "Colloquial Portuguese" for those who want a better understanding of literary Portuguese and its variations. ... Read more

Product Description
Now learning a foreign language can be enjoyable as well as challenging, and not require a trip back to the classroom. Available in both book-only or book-and-cassette format, these Three-Month Language Courses are outstanding self-study programs designed for the individual seeking to acquire a good working knowledge of a language in a short amount of time. Devoting just over an hour daily to the course, the program provides grammar lessons, contextual conversion drills, relevant word lists, and graded exercises, giving you an immediate and practical grasp of the language. In addition, pronunciation is made easy with Hugo's unique "imitated pronunciation" system, which represents foreign sounds with English syllables. Whether you are a businessman tackling an international account, a student preparing for an adventurous holiday, or simply a lover of new languages, the Three-Month Language Course makes learning easy, satisfying, and more fun than ever before. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Languages are no longer taught like this
This course is all based on grammar followed by texts to practise the grammar. Some texts are rather odd. In the first lesson Portuguese Maria Helena, from the Algarve, is working in Lisbon as a doctor. She says she cannot speak Portuguese but that does not matter. She is about to learn the language now. Isn't this rather odd? In a reading practice later towards the end of the book there is a text on two convicted criminals that have escaped. I hope I shall not meet them when I am in Portugal.

This course may appeal to the older generations from the days when, I am told, grammar was how languages were taught at school. This is now too old-fashioned. I prefer a more modern approach.

Not bad, but...
...I do wish they'd given an explanation as to why all the Portuguese words which end in the letter "r" have an unwritten "t" sounded at the end as well, with the result being that "ter" (to have) is pronounced "teert" on these cassettes, and "valor" as "valort" etc. If this really is the right way of pronouncing such words in European Portuguese, how come there's no mention of this peculiarity anywhere in the pronunciation guides of the accompanying book (or any others I've looked at about learning Portuguese for that matter)?? I don't know any natives to ask about this unfortunately, but I am thinking of going on holiday (vacation) to Portugal sometime in the not too distant future, and would prefer to know before then whether these t-sounds are correct or not so I'm not in the habit of mispronouncing many of their words by the time I do start communicating with native speakers!

That said however, I think the book and tapes are pretty good apart from that. Essential grammar is clearly explained, and I found the frequent exercises provided a useful way of assessing my progress by drawing attention to what hadn't yet fully sunk in and needed to be gone over again.

Good book,but I have just that book not cassettes
I need to have those cassettes as well, but I don't find any sense that I had to buy whole package 'cause it not possible to buy just cassettes.Is it really so? ... Read more

Product Description

Colloquial Portuguese is easy to use and completely essential! Specially written by experienced teachers for self-study or class use, the course offers you a step-by-step approach to written and spoken Portuguese. No prior knowledge of the language is required.

What makes Colloquial Portuguese your best choice in personal language learning?
* interactive - lots of dialogues and exercises for regular practice
* clear - concise grammar notes
* practical - useful vocabulary and pronunciation guide
* complete - including answer key and special reference section

By the end of this rewarding course you will be able to communicate confidently and effectively in a broad range of situations.

Accompanying audio material is available to purchase separately on CD/MP3 format, or comes included in the great value Colloquials pack.  Recorded by native speakers, these will help develop your listening and pronunciation skills.

Customer Reviews (4)

Made for parrots, not language learners
Once again a course from Routledge that is all but destroyed by a very common error. No wordlists.

For some reason, quite a few of the authors in the Colloquial series seem to be under the false impression that providing English translations of the dialogues is a satisfactory substitute for listing the new words. I disagree 100%. There are no languages that can be translated word by word into English and the result of this is that you end up not knowing which words in Portuguese that corresponds to a given English word.

The result of this is that you can memorize the phrases in this book like a parrot, but that won't get you any far and is no better than a much cheaper and more extensive phrasebook. As you're not given the chance to learn and repeat new words, you simply won't be able to construct sentences on your own. This makes the book rather unhelpful for learners. Look for Teach Yourself Portuguese instead. The cover is not as nice, but the content is much better with proper word-lists in each lesson, more extensive explanations and full coverage of the differences between European and Brazilian Portuguese.

Eu achei o livro finalmente.
In Japan, we have lots of difficuties in finding the textbook for conversations of European Portuguese.
I'm very happy to find this.
Actually it doesn't have the detail about grammer,but don't worry, we heve some useful ones in Japan.
Next time I visit Portugal, I hope I can make many friends with Portuguese.
Thanks a lot!!!
Muito obrigado!!!

"Continental" Portuguese?
Being Brazilian, I can tell that there are indeed several differences between Brazilian and European Portuguese, but the main difficulty are the local expressions that differ a lot and the pronunciation/accent. It is harder to understand the European accent than the Brazilian one. Grammarwise, the main and maybe only significant difference is the use of the Gerund in Brazil for continuous actions, forsaken long ago in Portugal. However, both countries do speak the same language and one can be understood in either one regardless what "Portuguese" he or she learned. By the same authors, there is the "Colloquial Portuguese from Brazil", which has enough grammar discussions and real life dialogues based on "Brazilian Portuguese", despite using over formal and unnatural structures, sometimes. A comment on the first review made about this book: What is "Continental Portuguese"? Is Brazil an Island? Or is Europe the only "Continent" with capital C so that the Portuguese spoken in Portugal can be labelled "Continental"?

This books lacks Brazilian Portuguese.
This book is completely on Continental (or European) Portuguese.
At times, dialogs between Brazilians are presented but words and sentence structure is Continental, something Brazilian speakers would never say or use. Don't get me wrong. This book is okay if your aim is to learn Continental Portuguese (10 millions of speakers). If you are interested in Brazilian Portuguese this book will be no use and might teach you wrong. ... Read more

Product Description
First published as the very popular Oxford Paperback Portuguese Dictionary, it is now available for the first time in a new format with colour headwords. The Oxford Colour Portuguese Dictionary cover over 40,000 words and phrases, and over 65,000 translations, and features the same exceptionally clear colour layout as the other titles in the series. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

a marvelous dictionary for everyone
''The Oxford Color Portuguese Dictionary'' is what you've been waiting for. A modern pocket dictionary of Brazilian Portuguese.
Unlike many other dictionaries of this language that focus on Rio de Janeiro Portuguese, this one has less regionally-marked features. The pronunciation in brackets is that of city of São Paulo. This pronunciation is very close to neutral Brazilian pronunciation used by trained speakers on Brazilian radio Radiobrás (Brazilian version of BBC radio). Throughout the dictionary, IPA symbols have been used.

Diphthongs reduction (a very common phenomenon present in modern Brazilian Portuguese) has been indicated (['keSa] for ''queixa'', [brazi'leru] for ''brasileiro, ['poku] for ''pouco'').
Vocabulary is very vast and has many idioms and even slang expressions. Continental Portuguese variants have been included, as well as a verb list.

A must buy. ... Read more

Product Description
The book walks you through your language in 23 easy steps. Almost automatically you will acquire a large working vocabulary that will suit your needs. As you work through the steps, use the sticky labels (included). At the back of the book, you will also find cut-out flash cards to make learning fun. When you have completed the book, cut out the menu at the back and take it along on your trip. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (22)

Very good reference!!
This is a very good refernce. I use it in conjunction with Rosetta Stone. The book makes Rosetta Stone easier to understand. This book can stand on it's own. Best part, learn at your own pace. Building the vocabulary is easy. Learning day-to-day becomes second nature.

CMG

Pretty good for building up vocabulary and the basics
First of all, I'd like to say that this is a great beginner book for anyone just starting out learning Português. If you want to learn the basics, then you should start with this book. The pages are colorful, bright, and even comes with little goodies like peel-off stickers you can take off and put around your house, and cut-out cards of basic phrases and words. You skim the surface of the Portuguese language, and that's pretty good for when you go on to more advanced books. I think this book follows a lot close to Brazilian Portuguese, than European Portuguese, and the books typically uses phrases found in Brazil, so I'm not sure how helpful this would be if you were trying to learn European Portuguese

just words
With Portuguese in 10 minutes a day, first surprise: you dont have to study 10 minutes a day, there are no structured lessons, just a huge list of vocabulary, not always useful. You learn the colors and all the objects in the house before to learn "oi, tudo bem?". Bad choice.

Great Learning Tool
When I moved to Brazil, I tried several programs - some with audio, some without, but this book was by far the most helpful. Some people have said that the pronunciations are a bit off... this is because she wrote from the perspective of a Sao Paulo accent. Being that most national news anchors have the same accent, it's not a problem.

Like the U.S there are regional accents, and you just need to pay attention to the variations. For example: the Sao Paulo region pronounces their S's like "sh"... whereas in the central region of the country, it's simply "S".

The same goes for a few other words that are used frequently, like "nos" or "us".
In Sao Paulo, they say, "noish"... while in the central part of the country it's pronounced "NOS" (as in the abbreviated term for nitrous oxide). In the south of the country it is different still, as there is a large population of German immigrants, which has modified the dialect in that area.

All in all, the book is an excellent stepping-stone for being able to say the basics, enough to communicate with Brazilians in Portuguese. Once you have mastered the basics, get ready for the slang that varies region to region. There is a lot - and more invented, daily!

For example: pamonha (pronounced "puh-moin-yuh") is a type of large tamale that is made from corn, and can be sweet or salty, with meat or cheese inside. They are wrapped in a husk of corn, and tied tightly in the middle with either a rubber band or small piece of cord.

Like our ice cream trucks in the U.S. they have pamonha trucks in every neighborhood, around 6 in the evening. A recording says, "Olha Pamonha!" ("Look! Pamonha!") ...and proceeds to list off which flavors are available.
The word "Pamonha" has also become slang for someone who is bulging out of his or her tight clothes.

Boa sorte in your studies! :)

Variety
I like the stickers that you can place on objects in your home; they helped me learn some nouns.Also, I like how they write in English, but incorporate Portuguese words as you learn.The only fault I've found is that I don't always agree with the pronunciation guides. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Usefulness NEVER goes out of "style"
Beware the temporal snob I always say, as a good colloquial saying never goes out of style.This book is FANTASTIC.I've worked many of the expressions from this book into my conversations with Brazilians and they not only knew what I was talking about, it always produced a great laugh and the question "where does a gringo ever learn to say such things?"From this book I tell ya!CERTAIN (not all) slang expressions do fall from usage, and some new ones are added - does that erase the value of this incredible text? Not for a second.Can you imagine how old our expression "take a hike" is?Or how about "What's up?" (I'm sure it was around before Bugs Bunny said it in 1939)"What's up?" Is as hip now as it was over 60 years ago, as are the expressions used in this book.But it's not about being hip, it's about understand figurative language and being able to express yourself figuratively.That's what this book does for you, and I assure you that as much as people said "that's diesel" 5 years ago, we never needed that expression to begin with (but I doubt we'll ever stop saying "what's up"...case closed).The good ones never die.Buy it!And to you guys who don't like the fact that whatever was said in the latest rap cd isn't in here - deixa de encher o saco, PQP~!

Definitive and impressively comprehensive
The authors make a valiant attempt to compile a comprehensive register of Brazilian slang but by its very nature is flawed due to the impossibility to keep up with the rapid pace at which languages change.The authors neglect to include commonly used expressions like "pagar um mico" and "soltar a franga" but is, overall, the impressive result of an obviously tremendous amount of hard work.Despite some inescapable shortcomings the book proves itself to be one of the most definitive reference guides to a side of Brazilian Portuguese too often excluded by mainstream textbooks.

This book's the bomb
I must disagree with the other reviewer who said this book was out of date. This book is amazing and super-useful. I just came back from a year in Brasil (I returned in January of 2001) and I carried this book everywhere. It was very helpful when it came to reading, drinking and brandishing insults.

At first glance the book does look old. It looks like it might be xeroxed pages from a typewriter, but after a couple moments with the book all my friends were trying to steal it from me. It made me feel local so much faster than any other book, tape or video I had packed in my arsenal. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

30 Year Old Out of Date Usage
Book may be useful for the professional Portuguese "translator" that is looking for a variety of colloquial word usages ranging from 1983 to many years back.But for everyday "informal" BrazilianPortuguese spoken today, I have found it of little use - - buyer mustremember that while Amazon says the book is a 1984 copyright date (the bookitself says 1983) this book is two decades (or more) old.Informaleveryday word usage in Brazil today is much different than from the 70'sand early 80's.I travel to Brazil once a month and have found it oflittle use.

An indispensible tool
I am truly astonished at the amount of research the authors put into this text; I would have considered it a bargain at triple the price.It covers a very wide range of levels of informality ranging from merely"colloquial" all the way down to "vulgar."

Many of myBrazilian friends have commented that the book is accurate and the examplesquite humorous.If you are studying Portuguese, you must have a copy ofthis book. ... Read more