Portuguese

noun

Por·​tu·​guese ˈpȯr-chə-ˌgēz 

-ˌgēs;

ˌpȯr-chə-ˈgēz,

-ˈgēs 

plural Portuguese

1

a

: a native or inhabitant of Portugal

b

: one who is of Portuguese descent

2

: the Romance language of Portugal and Brazil

Portuguese adjective

Examples of Portuguese in a Sentence

She is teaching her son Portuguese.

the customs of the Portuguese

Recent Examples on the Web

Stacks in Arabic, Farsi, Haitian Creole, Hmong, Punjabi and Tigrinya were ready to be packed, and the first batches in Amharic, Khmer and Portuguese would soon be shipped. —Miriam Jordan, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2025

He’s put his foot in his mouth in Spanish, French and Portuguese. —News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Feb. 2025

En route to the 1955 Portuguese Grand Prix, the Jaguar transporter broke down. —Howard Walker, Robb Report, 3 Feb. 2025

French, German, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, Thai, Russian, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, and Arabic are all represented and spoken by Tekken characters. —Veerender Jubbal, Rolling Stone, 31 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Portuguese português, adjective & noun, from Portugal

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing Portuguese

• Portuguese man-of-war
• Portuguese water dog
• the Portuguese

Rhymes for Portuguese

• abcs
• absentees
• addressees
• adoptees
• allottees
• amputees
• antifreeze
• appellees
• appointees
• arrestees
• artistes
• assamese

Kids Definition

Portuguese

noun

Por·​tu·​guese ˈpōr-chə-ˌgēz  ˈpȯr- 

-ˌgēs;

ˌpōr-chə-ˈgēz,

ˌpȯr-,

-ˈgēs

plural Portuguese

1

: a person born or living in Portugal

2

: the language of Portugal and Brazil

Portuguese adjective