My Spanish teacher told me this, is this true?

Question

She told me that Spanish and Portuguese are two very similar languages. She says that a native Spanish speaker and a native Portuguese speaker can have a conversation and completely understand each other. I doubt that though, in text, Portuguese looks different from Spanish.

I won't give a formal answer, but some Spaniards have told me that the Portuguese shift vowels in a strange way that makes them very difficult and that for a Spaniard they can get much more (70%) of an Italian. But I have had heard that understanding.. - bosquederoble, Jan 30, 2016

Spanish speakers is not that difficult for the Portuguese. This is all hearsay so it could be completely wrong though. Written language is of course easier. :) - bosquederoble, Jan 30, 2016

Creo que esto es verdad en mi experiencia personal. Vea abajo. See below. - 00cc0117, Jan 30, 2016

I doubt it also especially if coming from different ends of the Peninsular. - ray76, Jan 30, 2016

Answer 1

Although I am not a native speaker of either Spanish or Brazilian Portuguese, I have been learning and speaking both these languages for some time! I have received 1: 1 lessons with both Spanish and Brazilian native speakers! I also have two friends who live locally with a child and she is is a native from Spain and he is from Brazil.

There are similarities in the ortography (spelling) of both languages in the written form, which can make it easier for natives of both languages to understand each other provided that they are communicating in writing alone! This is not surprising since they are both Romance languages and are therefore in the same language family (based on Latin)!

However, to the experienced speaker and/or linguist, the pronounciation of these languages is noticeably different and this can potentially cause misunderstandings or in the worst case scenario, even a breakdown in communication! So, in my view, it would be both naïve and a gross over simplification to suggest that natives of either language can easily understand each other when communication only involves the spoken form!

Brazilian Portuguese is somewhat different from the Portuguese spoken in Portugal because in the former, the sounds are more open and less clipped than those from Portugal which makes Brazilian Portuguese much easier to understand and the vocabulary is diferent,too! In Brazil they usually use the informal você form to mean you (familiar) among friends and family much like the tú form which is used in Spain!

Of course, for good comnunication to take place, a lot would depend on various factors such as: the clarity of speech, the speed at which each speaker spoke, and other forms of communication that were also being used at the same time:

1.Non Verbal communication: ie body langusge such as, facial expressions, (smiles, frowns) hand gestures, body posture etc...

2 Any attempt by either person to try to explain what they were trying to say in writing if they couldn' t express themselves in words!

I had quite a close relationship with a girl from Brazil för about 4 years; firstly through the internet using a dating site for Christians then writing to her,. Later on, I started using Live Messenger and occasionally speaking to her over the phone. To begin with, I just wrote or spoke in Spanish..She was my principal motivation to learn Portuguese My youth pastor in our church at the time was from São Paulo and he started giving me private lessons for 1 hour a week. After about nearly 2 years, I was able to communicate more confidently and accurately using much more of the language, which was fine online but still prseented considerable difficulties when trying to speak with her in her native language and/or Spanish, on the telephone! Any distortion (of the signal) on the line doesn't help, either as I am sure you can imagine!

Finally, here are some basic words and phrases in English, Spanish and their equivalents in Brazilian Portuguese!;

Good morning, sir (Eng) Buenos días, señor. (Esp) <--->Bom dia, o senhor (Br Port)

Good afternoon,madam (Eng) <--->;Buenas tardes, señora (Esp) <--->; Boa tarde a senhora (Br Port)

Good night, miss. (Eng) <--->; Buenas noches, señorita (Esp) <---->; Boa noite, a senhorita (Br Port)

Where are you, now? (Eng) <---->;¿Dónde estás, ahora? (Esp) <---> Onde você é, agora? (Br Port)

How are you? (Eng) <--> ¿Cómo estás? (Esp) <--->Tudo bem? / Tudo bem com você? (Br Port)

I am very well, thank you (Eng)

Estoy muy bien, gracias (Esp)

Estou muito bem, obrigado (man) obrigada (woman) / usually the Brazilians are very informal and usually just reply Tudo bem (I'm well/I'm fine) o Tudo joia = (I'm) Great!

When? (Eng) - ¿Cuándo ...? (Esp) <--->;; Quando? (Br Port)

If I can find the website that I used to use that gives natives pronouncing the words, (megaphone link like Spanish Dict) I will add the pronounciation guide for the Portuguese later. You can all use the SpanishDict website for the pronounciation of EnglIsh and Spanish words

Anyone who may be interested, can learn some Brazilian Portuguese for fun using the website Duolingo.com which,like our website, is completely free of charge, if you want to learn it seriously I strongly recommend finding a native teacher online. I can suggest some language websites if anyone is interested

I hope this helps

Answer 2

Usually, Portuguese and Italian people can understand better Spanish if spoken slowly. Same thing the other way around, but we have less chance to understand.

Edit:

Not so easy Annie. Just as German and English share a large amount of words, same thing happens between Italian, Portuguese and Spanish.

It isn;t as easy as listening to Russian being spoken really slowly that I am or you are going to be able to understand any of what's being said.

C?

A good summary of all language problems: if only they would speak more lowly! Ojala! - annierats, Jan 30, 2016

Annie read my edit, please. - chileno, Jan 31, 2016

Answer 3

I can understand Brazilians somewhat, but the Portuguese are impossible for me. They will take a word like "escudo" and pronounce it "Schoot." When I was visiting there I had to converse in French. Most of them did not understand my Spanish. It's a lot easier to read.

Matches what I think, I think. - bosquederoble, Jan 30, 2016

I was at home /in my house and I felt very ill. My mother took (literally: measured) my temperature and said that I had a high temperature /fever. - FELIZ77, Jan 30, 2016

I was shivering inside - FELIZ77, Jan 30, 2016

Answer 4

I don´t think there is complete understanding, but once I had a mother in-law who spoke nothing but Portuguese and I would speak to her in Spanish. Not every word was understood, but we both understood the general idea of every conversation.

Answer 5

¡Tengo un amigo que es de Costa Rica, y su esposa es Italiano! No hay ningún problema entender unos a otros y puedo entenderla también cuando hablamos. I have a friend who is Costa Rican and his wife is Italian, they have no problem understanding each other, and I can understand her also when we speak.

I do not know about portuguese? No sé nada portugués - 00cc0117, Jan 30, 2016

Cuando yo estaba en Buenos Aires, la maestra de español dijo que alli la lengua es una forma con Italiano. - 00cc0117, Jan 30, 2016

I am the same as you mate , but Portuguese is a whole different ball game , they speak with their mouths full of marbles. - ray76, Jan 30, 2016

We Spaniards and Latinos like to say that "El portugúes es nada más que el español mal pronunciado." ;) - Daniela2041, Jan 30, 2016

And Portuguese speakers hate that. - Daniela2041, Jan 30, 2016

Answer 6

I used to have a friend from Estoril [near Lisbon] who was fluent in Spanish and English. She wasn't fond of the Spanish!

I remember for a couple of months a group of us from work would have supper in each others houses and Lita would provide a Portuguese lesson. I found I could understand her written Portuguese [it was basic for the purpose of the lesson] but the pronunciation was so different I cannot believe native speakers would be able to talk to each other with one exception, people brought up in Galicia speaking gallego would be able to chat.

I have no knowledge of Brazilian Portuguese but assume as it is surrounded by Spanish speaking countries it may have incorporated Spanish words into normal speech - a little like Argentina who received a large number of Italian immigrants - the Pope's family being among them, has incorporated Italian words into daily life.

Great reponse, Mardle I completely agree with you :) - FELIZ77, Jan 30, 2016