Portuguese

American  

[pawr-chuh-geez, -gees, pohr-, pawr-chuh-geez, -gees, pohr-] / ˌpɔr tʃəˈgiz, -ˈgis, ˌpoʊr-, ˈpɔr tʃəˌgiz, -ˌgis, ˈpoʊr- /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Portugal, its inhabitants, or their language.

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noun

plural

Portuguese

1. a native or inhabitant of Portugal.

2. a Romance language spoken in Portugal, Brazil, and a few countries of Africa. Pg, Pg.

Portuguese British  

/ ˌpɔːtjʊˈɡiːz /

noun

1. the official language of Portugal, its overseas territories, and Brazil: the native language of approximately 110 million people. It belongs to the Romance group of the Indo-European family and is derived from the Galician dialect of Vulgar Latin

2. a native, citizen, or inhabitant of Portugal

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adjective

1. relating to, denoting, or characteristic of Portugal, its inhabitants, or their language

Other Word Forms

• anti-Portuguese adjectiveanti-Portuguese
• non-Portuguese adjectivenon-Portuguese
• pro-Portuguese adjectivepro-Portuguese

Etymology

Origin of Portuguese

1580–90; < Portuguese português, Spanish portugués; see Portugal, -ese

Example Sentences

The Portuguese government announced last September that it was seeking a major international airline to buy most of the 49.9 percent stake that it plans to privatise.

From Barron's • Apr. 23, 2026

Lula, 80, who began a European tour last week, was later to meet with Portuguese counterpart Jose Seguro for their first face-to-face talks since Seguro took office in March.

From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026

Sunday's 1-1 draw against Aston Villa, when Portuguese manager Pereira made nine changes to return to his strongest Premier League side, justified the minor gamble in Porto.

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026

Ten-year eurozone bond yields fell by up to 30 basis points, with more pronounced declines in Italian, French, Belgian, Spanish and Portuguese bonds yields than in German Bund yields.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

“Sometime poor man work for pay roora. That okay,” the Portuguese man said.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer