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Portuguese · Meeting people · Elementary

How to say where you’re from in Portuguese

Say “Sou de…” plus your country, then how long you’ve been here: “Mudei-me para cá há uns seis meses”. When asked why, keep it short: “Vim por causa do trabalho”. People often ask “Gosta de viver aqui?”, and “Sim, gosto muito” is the warm answer.

Try it · about two minutes

A new acquaintance asks where you’re from, how long you’ve lived here and what brought you.

You choose what to say back, and Frasa tells you why it works.

The conversation

  1. New acquaintance

    De onde é?

    Where are you from?

    You

    Sou de Inglaterra.

    I’m from England.

  2. New acquaintance

    Há quanto tempo vive cá?

    How long have you lived here?

    You

    Mudei-me para cá há uns seis meses.

    I moved here about six months ago.

  3. New acquaintance

    Porque é que decidiu mudar-se para cá?

    Why did you decide to move here?

    You

    Vim por causa do trabalho.

    I came for work.

  4. New acquaintance

    Gosta de viver aqui?

    Do you like living here?

    You

    Sim, gosto muito.

    Yes, I like it a lot.

  5. New acquaintance

    Fala muito bem!

    You speak very well.

    You

    Obrigada, mas ainda estou a aprender.

    Thank you, but I’m still learning.

  6. New acquaintance

    Como é a sua terra?

    What’s your home town like?

    You

    É muito diferente daqui.

    It’s very different from here.

Key phrases

  • Há quanto tempo vive cá?

    How long have you lived here?

  • Mudei-me para cá há uns seis meses.

    I moved here about six months ago.

  • Estou cá há duas semanas.

    I’ve been here for two weeks.

  • Porque é que decidiu mudar-se para cá?

    Why did you decide to move here?

  • Gosta de viver aqui?

    Do you like living here?

  • Sim, gosto muito.

    Yes, I like it a lot.

  • Ainda me estou a habituar a tudo.

    I’m still getting used to everything.

  • Tenho saudades da família, mas gosto de viver aqui.

    I miss my family, but I like living here.

  • Como é a sua terra?

    What’s your home town like?

  • Cresci numa vila pequena.

    I grew up in a small town.

Good to know in Portugal

De Inglaterra, not da Inglaterra

In Portugal

Sou de Inglaterra.

I’m from England.

In Brazil

Sou da Inglaterra.

I’m from England.

In Portugal a few countries take no article: de Inglaterra, de Espanha. Most others do: da Alemanha, do Canadá.

How the conversation usually goes

  1. 1

    Where you’re from.

  2. 2

    How long you’ve been here.

    Mudei-me para cá há uns seis meses.I moved here about six months ago.
  3. 3

    Whether you like it here.

    Sim, gosto muito.Yes, I like it a lot.

Cá means here

In Portugal “cá” is an everyday word for here, and often means this country.

Há quanto tempo vive cá?

How long have you lived here?

More situations in Portuguese

All situations in Portuguese

Keep these phrases in Frasa

Frasa is an iPhone app for the conversations in front of you. Save phrases like these, rehearse them out loud, and they come back until they stick.

AI-generated. May be inaccurate.