Family Members in Portuguese: The Essential Words for Beginners

Family is at the heart of Brazilian and Portuguese culture, so this vocabulary pays off immediately. The words follow neat masculine/feminine pairs and a couple of nicely nasal sounds to practise.

The core family

English	Portuguese
mother	a mãe
father	o pai
son	o filho
daughter	a filha
brother	o irmão
sister	a irmã
husband	o marido
wife	a esposa

Notice the nasal endings in mãe, irmão and irmã — they're great pronunciation practice.

Wider family

English	Portuguese
grandfather	o avô
grandmother	a avó
uncle	o tio
aunt	a tia
cousin (m / f)	o primo / a prima

Avô (grandfather) and avó (grandmother) differ only in that final vowel sound — worth saying aloud a few times.

Two handy plurals

The masculine plural covers mixed groups: os pais means "the parents", os filhos means "the children", and os avós means "the grandparents".

Saying "my"

Use meu / minha / meus / minhas to agree with the noun: meu pai, minha mãe, meus irmãos.

Make them stick by saying them

These words land fast through use. Navoq has you describe your own family out loud in real Portuguese sentences, with instant pronunciation feedback — so they're ready when someone asks about yours.

Family members in Portuguese