Cons:
not organized or designed as a dictionary; difficult to use as a primary language lesson course without further resources; extra resources available cost extra and intended for classroom use; extensive vocabulary lists require lots of memorization; designed for Brazilians studying English, though this does little to impact its usefulness

The OPD English/Brazilian Portuguese is less of a dictionary and more of an extensive, themed vocabulary list with a few extras like questions, simple activities and a reference index. These image-driven pages full of categorized Portuguese words may help you expand your understanding of Portuguese, and offer a way of visualizing vocabulary as you learn to speak the language.

The heart of the book is divided into broad categories like people, food, work and plants & animals, and narrow subcategories like a grocery store or a restaurant (under “food”) or feelings or daily routines (under “people”).

Each subcategory takes up one or two pages, and includes either one large image or a series of smaller, square pictures in rows. The images are all full-color, realistically illustrated cartoons. Letters or numbers on each image relate to a particular vocab word. The word or word list is written next to the image.

The OPD extends its use by including questions for further discussion and practice activities on many pages. Certain pages also contain reading activities, but, since all readings and questions are in English, you’ll quickly realize this book’s real target audience: Brazilian ESL learners.

The Oxford Picture Dictionary offers an attractive and well-organized way to visualize Portuguese vocabulary, or, at least, to connect words with images. Still, it’s not a fully developed vocabulary lesson book on the one hand, and far from a real dictionary on the other. If you’re a beginner and could use such a Brazilian vocabulary resource, this book should be worth your purchase. If you want to get more out of the book, the same press offers OPD Lesson Plans, OPD: Low Beginning Workbook and the OPD Classroom Activities, although all of these are intended primarily for teaching ESL.

Cons:
the book’s main feature is to offer lists of relatively straightforward Portuguese words that are similar to English words – few students need so many pages & exercises to build this simple skill; introduction & pronunciation guide are bare-bones, merely providing a distraction; lengthy vocabulary lists with very little pacing to get you through them; browsing through a Portuguese dictionary teaches most learners the same vocabulary building skills; you must know a good amount of Portuguese for the exercises to be at all useful to you

The Instant Brazilian Portuguese Vocabulary Builder is all about endings. Its 200 pages cover lists of words with similar endings in English and Portuguese, capitalizing on the fact that the former borrowed many words – indeed, an entire word-building system – from Latin for so much of our “formal” or “learned” vocabulary.

In each of 24 chapters, you’ll focus on pages of vocabulary words with one such ending. Chapter titles list the suffix in English then Portuguese, such as -tion/-ção. Then, page after page of vocabulary lists give words in English first, then Portuguese to the right, every word having that chapter’s suffix. The chapter treating -tion/-ção starts off with:

abbreviation . . . . . . . . . . . . . abreviação (meaning “a shortening”)
abdication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . abdicação
aberration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . aberração

And the list goes on. Some words (like “abbreviation” above) offer further meaning help, while others give short example phrases directly beneath them to show the word in context. The book doesn’t delve deep into the semantics of Portuguese words – the focus remains on the 24 derivational suffixes common to Portuguese and English.

Exercises end each chapter, and are among the book’s few truly strong points. You’ll match Portuguese words containing the specific ending you just studied with their Portuguese synonyms, read paragraphs and answer questions using words you learn, and more.

The audio CD included with the book allows you to listen to the paragraph-long readings as you complete the activities. Unfortunately, these exercises require you to have some mastery of the language before undertaking them. An appendix contains answers to the practice exercises.

Since the Instant Brazilian Portuguese Vocabulary Builder focuses entirely on words and word forms that are similar in Brazilian Portuguese and English, it severely limits itself as a resource, while also rendering most of its vocabulary lists redundant. You’ll learn a little and complete worthwhile exercises in this course, but, in the long run, you’re much better off with a good dictionary. To be honest, even a simple travel phrasebook will get you further in your efforts to speak Portuguese.

Cons:
more scholarly and linguistic than other books reviewed here; whatever your skill level, you must be willing to take it for what it is and extract useful examples and explanatory analysis for your own learning benefit

Mario Perini’s Modern Portuguese intends to bridge the linguistic gap between standard Portuguese and real-life Brazilian language use in his thorough breakdown of Brazilian Portuguese grammar.

The foreword and introduction are very academic, mostly of interest to linguists. From there, Perini moves on to an extremely detailed coverage of Portuguese grammar, with a specific focus on the structure of Brazilian usage.

There’s no point in keeping students in the dark about the difference between standard Portuguese and the real Brazilian Portuguese language as it’s spoken. It’s not a matter of slang or improper speech – people of all walks of life in Brazil speak differently than they write.

To shed light on this subject, Perini builds a robust, well-organized guide that breaks down all the essentials of Brazilian grammar. The topics covered are rather technical, and that’s where a knowledge of linguistics comes in handy.

Yet even if your knowledge of linguistics stops at “nouns” and “verbs”, the exposure to real Brazilian usage is the key here. Unit by unit, section by section, the book tackles every major topic of grammar and sentence structure. You’ll read plenty of fluent examples that illustrate each point along the way.

The book does an excellent job of analyzing Portuguese grammar into smaller, manageable chunks, and tracking down examples that illustrate those chunks. It sets out to cover the whole of Brazilian grammar, and does an equally commendable job of covering such a wid range of topics. Some have mentioned mistakes, but I didn’t see anything that would keep me away.

If you’re learning Brazilian Portuguese, Mario Perini’s Modern Portuguese is a welcome addition to your collection. Non-linguists will have to use this as a secondary grammar reference, not as a main lesson course. Any student of Brazilian will be able to mine examples and quickly find topics of interest in this methodical, deep, well-organized resource.

This new, up-to-date Portuguese language dictionary is a heavyweight contender for your reference shelf. If you’re an intermediate or advanced student of Portuguese looking for a real Portuguese dictionary, this is one of the most impressive.

It’s published in Portugal by the staff at Dicionários Editora, O Porto. It includes the spelling reform rules, listing before and after examples of impacted words. It’s Portuguese-only, meaning that it offers words, parts of speech and definitions, NOT translations between Portuguese and English. It’s the right tool for someone who already knows some Portuguese, but not for beginning learners.

Cons:
includes Brazilian words but is published in and focused on Portugal; must know Portuguese to get full use; many versions are older (I referenced one from the eighties); price; size (if need to use on the go); some potentially confusing variants still missing keyword cues

As you might have guessed by their names, the Dicionário Inglês-Português and Dicionário Português-Inglês are dictionaries published in O Porto, Portugal for Portuguese speakers. Because of that (and their large size and depth), let’s establish something before moving towards a review: intermediate and advanced learners of European Portuguese are the target audience, and should read on to see why I’ll recommend this dictionary. If you know enough Portuguese, this dictionary “não requer instruções prévias especiais”.

The English-Portuguese and Portuguese-English translations are split between two volumes. Each book is well over 1,000 pages, and almost every one of those 1,000+ pages is devoted to doing what a language dictionary should: they offer you translated words to look up.

Entries are in bold type, and set apart from the rest of the text by a reverse-indent. IPA phonetic spelling is listed to the right of each entry. Parts of speech are given as well, in abbreviated form (vt for transitive verb, s for sustantivo (noun), etc.).

Each word is covered by a robust number of translations, including variants. Where unclear, variants are accompanied by key terms in parentheses. For example, the use of dub includes the translation “dobrar (um filme)”, specific to dubbing a movie.

The top of each page includes page numbers and the first three letters of the first and last words on the page. Pages are divided into two columns, and the font is small enough to bother weaker eyes, but standard for a dictionary.

The sheer number of terms covered is unmatched by foreigner-targeted Portuguese dicitonaries, at least any that I’ve seen. The drawbacks I noticed in the copy I reviewed included its awkward size, its older date (1980s) and its lower relevance if you’re dealing with Brazil. If you need a serious European Portuguese and English language dictionary, these dicionários are my best recommendation so far.

Cons:
price for the number of words (and lack of extras); nothing added, such as helpful verb tables; meager, especially the English-Portuguese section; some mistakes; doesn’t offer cues to clarify difference between word choices (catastrophic in English-Portuguese section)

Living Language offers the Portuguese Learner’s Dictionary as part of the Brazilian Portuguese Complete Course: The Basics. Those 250+ pages of lessons offer vocabulary & phrase lists, grammar instruction and exercises. (Be careful to note whether you’re purchasing the hardcover book, paperback book, audio CD or the full book & CD set.)

Since I have found this dictionary sold separately at some bookstores for around $7-$8 US, I’m choosing to review it as a stand-alone resource.

This dictionary is split into two sections: a Portuguese-English and English-Portuguese. The longer Portuguese-English section prints entries in bold. Adjectives are indicated by adj., noun genders as m. and f. Some Portuguese entries are written in all-caps, presumably more basic or important words.

The information given isn’t always accurate. For instance, ACASO is listed as an adjective, not as the adverb it really is.

This dictionary’s strongest feature is the inclusion of short Portuguese phrases and sentences below some entries. Unfortunately, the translations and examples aren’t always specific enough to clarify the varied uses of tougher words. What’s more, these sample phrases seem to be substituted for something better – relevant key terms used when words have multiple (and potentially confusing) translations.

The English-Portuguese section shares all the same properties, except that it doesn’t regularly indicate parts of speech and it’s much shorter. Even worse, the lack of differentiation between words with multiple meanings in Portuguese makes looking up tough words a disaster – you can only guess that you’re using the right one. A concise list of proper names is found after both sections.

If you’re using the Portuguese Learner’s Dictionary alongside Living Language’s Brazilian Portuguese course (see first paragraph), you will profit from it as long as you think of it as an extended vocabulary list. If you’re looking for a dictionary, my recommendation is that you spend a bit more for a better one.

Cons:
despite its visual appeal, visual learners would have benefited from images that correspond to the phrases; Brazilian only (a con for European Portuguese learners); fold-out format cumbersome for some travelers (do you like laminated maps?); coverage and variety of phrases is less than traditional phrasebook for the price

Portuguese: A Language Map is not a book, but an eight page laminated fold-out. It fits as many Portuguese phrases as possible onto the space of two sides of a placemat, with the exception of spots dedicated to attractive watercolor drawings.

The phrases cover 14 different traveler-friendly topics from meeting people (Como vai?) to hotels and room service (Fiz uma reserva) to shopping (Aceita cartões de crédito?). Each section contains one or two dozen must-know phrases, which seem well chosen and fit the topic. The top and bottom borders also count to one thousand in Portuguese for easy access.

Each phrase is accompanied by an English-friendly pronunciation reading, which is less than optimal if you can listen to a native speaker instead (or, at least, read Portuguese sounds written in IPA). Still, this guide gives you a rough idea of how to pronounce words as you speak Portuguese (por-too-gaysh).

The layout of words and phrases follows Portuguese in 10 Minutes a Day. According to the back of the product, this map is offered bundled together with that book as a companion phrase chart.

I don’t think the coverage offered by Portuguese: A Language Map can compare with other Portuguese phrase books available online or at your local bookstore. However, if you like the layout and style, and you plan to travel to Brazil, it’s worth it for the ability to reference vocabulary quickly. On the other hand, I’m used to the book format, and find this foldout stylish but unwieldy.

Cons:
sense of progress marred by ambiguous presnetation of material; explanations get dense or problematic at times; too tough for beginners, but many sections just review for intermediate learners; questionable organization of material; a bad course for fresh beginners and students who can’t find their own way without extra guidance

The author of Teach Yourself Brazilian Portuguese flexes her grammatical muscles in this attempt to present Portuguese grammar to self-taught learners pursuing a “complete understanding” of the language.

Teach Yourself Portuguese Grammar begins with a glossary of grammar terms (noun, verb, etc… all in English with English examples). Then, there are some notes about Portuguese spelling, punctuation, accent marks and stress.

Beyond that point, the book is taken up with a thorough presentation of all the basic and intermediate points of Portuguese grammar and sentence structure. It even manages to cover some advanced topics. As a learner, I know your next question without you asking: but how well does the book teach Portuguese grammar?

Over the course of 45 lessons (46 total minus the spelling unit mentioned above), you will read and reread sections that explain a range of grammar topics. Some topics deal with specific words (like por and para), while others focus on general patterns (like the inflected infinitive of verbs).

Within each chapter, topics are explained in the “grammar in focus” section. These explanations can be dry, dense and textbook-like. What’s more, they may leave out crucial material that beginners. Despite the book’s coverage of both Brazilian and European Portuguese, examples of the two aren’t always distinguished carefully, and some of the information (especially about those ever-tricky Portuguese verbs!) should be checked for accuracy against native speakers of each dialect.

Fortunately, the explanations are supported by well-placed Portuguese examples. Every “grammar in focus” topic has plenty of these sample sentences to digest with a Portuguese-English translation of each one. Exercises that follow offer variety and stay focused on the topics just presented. Some chapters offer a “grammar in context” activity after the exercises, which includes real-life Portuguese examples to test your understanding.

The book ends with a short list of Brazilian and European vocabulary differences, a table of regular verb endings, a table of irregular verbs (the same one found in Manuela Cook’s Teach Yourself Portuguese, and answers to the practice exercises. The book has no index, but the table of contents is thorough enough for later look-ups.

The order and choice of Portuguese grammar topics presented in each chapter is the toughest feature to accept. Related topics (such as definite articles, indefinite articles and nouns) are often grouped together, but the progression between chapters is ambiguous. It’s best if you make a separate learning plan for the grammar topics you need to learn or enhance, and refer to those sections in the book.

If you’re a later beginner looking to tighten your knowledge of Portuguese grammar, especially your abilities in the written language, I think you can learn a lot from this book. Its balance between explanations, examples and exercises, its coverage and variety are all commendable, even if the author’s way of organizing and explaining the material fails to impress.

Cons:
attempts to be Portugal-centric (European only), but includes some Brazilian without indicating the difference; does not TEACH you Portuguese like the name suggests, only lists phrases; the intro is a distraction; imperfect selection and layout of phrase topics; missing a good way to look up specific phrases

The Research and Education Association (or REA) publishes Portuguese Made Nice & Easy with the intend of giving you “just enough of the language to get around and be understood.”

In its meager seventy pages, this introduction to the Portuguese language dedicates the bulk of its text to a phrasebook-style list of Portuguese vocabulary and sentences. The short foreword presents a missable history of Portugal and an overview of Portuguese pronunciation (actually more of an introduction to their English-friendly way of transliterating spoken Portuguese).

After this, you’ll find sixty pages of phrases, interspersed with b&w photos of buildings and statuary in Portugal. Each line of this phrase book uses the following layout: English phrase praw-nun-see-AY-shan (Portuguese phrase). For instance, you’ll see Where is AWN-djee AH (Onde há).

If you don’t understand the pronunciation system, you’ll find little guidance. Even if you do, it fails to distinguish between dialects and, in extreme cases, leaves you with a pronunciation that will sound flat-out wrong to most Portuguese speakers. Despite the book’s focus on Portugal, some words are given only in Brazilian without any indication, such as twenty VEEN-chee (vinte).

The phrase book goes beyond a list of words and phrases by dealing with a good range of “fill-in” sentences. You’re told how to say “I want___” / “I like ___” and given a list of things to fill in the blank. While the technique is ubiquitous in phrase books, it’s approached somewhat methodically and consistently here. Still, the phrases leave something to be desired, particularly in how they fail to lead learners toward more complex (but necessary!) constructions like verb+noun+adjective.

The book has no index, but the table of contents offers a very rough overview of topics. The range of those topics alone leaves room for improvement and expansion. An alphabetized word list with selected vocabulary ends the book, but it’s unclear what’s been selected here and why, especially with no page numbers to cross-reference.

Overall, it’s a sub-par phrase book for students and travelers to Portugal or even Brazil (it insists on using você, never tu, for example). Specifically, I can’t condone the pronunciation key or coverage of topics. This is nothing more than a quick, cheap, lackluster way to get a feel for Portuguese phrases. I don’t imagine a better one should cost you much more.

Cons:
Brazilian only (explicitly treats language usage in Brazil, so look elsewhere, European Portuguese learners!); some topics less useful, other helpful ones missing; more of a lesson course on Portuguese phrases than an actual phrase book; pronunciation cues are rough and inexact – need to hear a native speaker and/or use IPA; some info simplified or even misleading

The compact Portuguese Phrases for Dummies attempts to offer a beefed-up phrasebook for students and travelers. Let’s take a look at this smaller-than-average (for a Dummies book), chatty book and find out exactly what it delivers to language learners.

You’ll cover a range of topics from “Shop Till You Drop” to “A Place to Lay Your Weary Head”. Each chapter covers one such topic, all in the expected Dummies format. Along the way, the author gives loads of insight, tips and musings about Brazil, Brazilians and the Portuguese language as it relates to each topic.

Portuguese phrases are listed between explanatory paragraphs a handful at a time, and are marked by checkmark bullet points. You’ll also find “words to know” (key words) on blackboard backgrounds as well as tables of more “functional” phrases scattered throughout the chapters.

Pronunciation is given in sounds-like-English syllables. For example, the word namorar is transliterated “nah-mo-dah“. Pronunciation reflects Brazilian speech, since this book sets its sights exclusively on Brazil.

The book takes the time to include a few extras. These include an easy but predictable Portuguese pronunciation guide, a chapter introducing grammar, and fun sections on phrases that make you sound more like a local native. The book ends with an index of vocab words with page number references.

Personally, I enjoyed my read through Portuguese Phrases for Dummies. But I quickly recognized that this hybrid phrase/lesson book doesn’t meet the ideal of a phrasebook or of a lesson book. It’s not a language tool for travel or business. It’s a book about Portuguese phrases. If you can accept that, you may get something out of it. If you’re learning Brazilian, it might be worth it for the book’s extra info about language use in Brazil less often shared with beginners.

A word of caution for the learner. If your ideal phrasebook is a list of survival phrases in translation broken down by topic, this book misses the mark. If you need a European or even a Brazilian Portuguese phrasebook, look elsewhere. If you want a book that talks you through Brazilian Portuguese phrase usage, you’ll find some satisfaction and amusement here.