Common English mistakes Brazilian speakers make, and how to fix them

If Brazilian Portuguese is your first language, many of your English mistakes are Portuguese showing through: its grammar, its sounds and its look-alike words. Linguists call this transfer, and speakers of every language do it. It is not carelessness, and because the mistakes follow a pattern you can learn where yours come from and catch them.

Ten patterns to listen for. 1) Age with "have": "I have 30 years" (tenho 30 anos) → "I'm 30". 2) "Has" for "there is" and "there are": "Has many people here" (tem muita gente aqui) → "There are a lot of people here". 3) "The" with general ideas and names: "The life is short", "The Maria called" → "Life is short", "Maria called". 4) Dropped subjects: "Is raining" → "It's raining". 5) Questions without "do": "Where you work?", "What means this word?" → "Where do you work?", "What does this word mean?" 6) False friends: "pretend" (pretender = intend), "push" (puxe = pull), "parents" (parentes = relatives), "library" (livraria = bookstore), "assist" (assistir = watch), "actually" (atualmente = currently), "exquisite" (esquisito = strange). 7) Double negatives: "I don't know nothing" → "I don't know anything". 8) "Explain me the rule" → "Explain the rule to me"; "married with" → "married to". 9) Adjectives after the noun or made plural: "a problem very difficult", "the others students" → "a very difficult problem", "the other students". 10) An extra vowel before "s": "estudy", "estreet" → "study", "street".

Knowing the list is not the same as speaking without the mistakes. What helps is practice: say the sentence, see the correction, say it again. Airi is a voice partner for exactly that. You talk, she answers out loud, shows one small fix at a time and keeps the conversation moving. It is free to start.

A quick example with Airi

I pretend to move to Canada next year.

Canada, nice! Small fix: "I plan to move to Canada next year." In English, "pretend" means to act as if something is true. Why Canada?

I plan to move to Canada next year. Has many jobs for nurses there.

That's a good reason. Small fix: "There are a lot of jobs for nurses there." Are you working as a nurse now?

Try a conversation like this, free600 free credits, about 8 minutes of speaking. No card.

Portuguese verbs that split into two or three English verbs

One Portuguese verb often does the work of two or three English ones. Reach for the English verb that looks closest and the sentence comes out odd, or says something you did not mean.

Brazilians often say	Natural English	What Portuguese does
Can you borrow me your charger?	Can you lend me your charger?	In Brazil "emprestar" is used for both lending and borrowing. In English the owner lends and the other person borrows: "Can I borrow your charger?"
Remember me to call the bank.	Remind me to call the bank.	"Lembrar" covers both "remember" and "remind".
I won a watch from my wife.	I got a watch from my wife.	"Ganhar" means win, earn and get as a present. In English "win" is only for a game, a prize or a bet.
We combined to meet at eight.	We agreed to meet at eight.	"Combinar" also means to arrange or agree on a plan.
I stayed nervous before the test.	I got nervous before the test.	"Ficar" means both "stay" and "become". For a change of state English uses "get" or "become".
I want to know Japan next year.	I want to visit Japan next year.	"Conhecer" covers knowing a person and seeing a place for the first time.
I made a course in design.	I took a course in design.	"Fazer" is both "do" and "make", and Portuguese also uses it for courses and questions. In English you take a course and ask a question.
I expect you like the present.	I hope you like the present.	"Esperar" is "wait", "hope" and "expect".
She said me the price.	She told me the price.	"Dizer" covers both "say" and "tell". "Tell" is the one followed by the person.

Brazilian Portuguese grammar patterns that carry over into English

Answering with the verb. Portuguese answers "Você gosta?" with "Gosto", so "Do you like it?" gets "Like" or "Yes, I like." English answers with the helper verb from the question: "Yes, I do."
The present tense for unfinished time. "Moro aqui há cinco anos" is present tense, which produces "I live here for five years" or "I live here since five years." English uses the present perfect, and "for" with a length of time: "I've lived here for five years."
The infinitive after a preposition. "Obrigado por me ajudar" and "Saí para comprar pão" become "Thanks for help me" and "I went out for buy bread." After a preposition English uses "-ing", and a purpose takes "to": "Thanks for helping me", "I went out to buy bread."
One preposition for three. "Em" covers "in", "on" and "at", which gives "in Monday", "in the bus" and "in home". English wants "on Monday", "on the bus" and "at home".
"All" for "every". "Todo" is both "all" and "every", so "todo mundo sabe" and "toda terça" become "all the world knows" and "all Tuesday". Say "Everybody knows" and "every Tuesday".
"People is". "O pessoal" and "a gente" take a singular verb in Portuguese. English "people" is plural even though it has no "s": "People are friendly here."

Why Brazilian speakers add an "ee" to English words, and other sound transfers

In Brazilian Portuguese only a few consonants can end a syllable, so a short "ee" slips in after the others: "big" becomes "biggy" and "work" becomes "worky". In most Brazilian accents "t" and "d" also turn into "tch" and "dj" before that vowel, which is how "hot dog", said the Brazilian way, becomes "hotchy doggy". In English, stop on the last consonant and add nothing.

Contrast	Practice words	How to make the difference
"r" and "h" at the start of a word	red / head, right / height	In many Brazilian accents an "r" at the start of a word is breathy, close to an English "h". For English "r", round the lips and curl the tongue tip back without letting it touch the roof of the mouth.
"th" and "t", "s" or "f"	thank / tank, think / sink, three / free	Portuguese has no "th" sound, so the nearest one takes its place. Put the tongue tip lightly between the teeth and let the air flow over it.
Final "m", "n" and "ng"	some / sun / sung	Portuguese nasalizes the vowel and drops the consonant. Close the lips for "m", put the tongue tip behind the top teeth for "n", and lift the back of the tongue for "ng".
Final "l"	goal / go, cold / code	In most Brazilian accents an "l" at the end of a syllable becomes a "w" sound, so "goal" can sound like "go". Finish with the tongue tip touching the ridge behind the top teeth.
The vowels in "bad" and "bed"	bad / bed, man / men	Both tend to land on Portuguese "é". For "bad", drop the jaw further and spread the lips.
Short and long vowel pairs	hit / heat, full / fool	Portuguese has one "i" and one "u". Hold the long vowel; for the short one, relax the mouth and keep it brief.
The "-ed" ending	worked, played, wanted	"Worked" ends in "kt" and "played" in "d", with no extra syllable. Only verbs that end in a "t" or "d" sound, such as "want" and "need", add one: "want-id", "need-id".

Borrowed "English" words used in Brazil, and false friends beyond "pretend" and "push"

Some words used in Brazil look English but mean something else in English, and some Portuguese words have an English look-alike with a different meaning.

In Brazil	It means	In English, say
shopping	a mall	"I went to the mall."
outdoor	a billboard	"I saw it on a billboard."
home office	working from home	"I work from home on Fridays."
legenda	subtitles, not a legend	"I watch movies with subtitles."
compromisso	an appointment or plans, not a compromise	"I have plans tonight."
educado	polite, not educated	"Her kids are very polite."
lanche	a snack, not lunch	"Let's get a snack."
eventualmente	occasionally or possibly, not eventually	"I occasionally work on weekends."

Three of the English words are worth knowing in their own right. A "home office" is the room you work in, not the arrangement. "Eventually" means in the end, after some time: "We eventually found the hotel." A "compromise" is an agreement where each side gives something up, so "I have a compromise at six" will puzzle a listener.

How to practice these Portuguese-to-English fixes out loud with Airi

Airi answers out loud and shows one small fix at a time. She does not score pronunciation, so treat her as a listener: her reply shows you what she understood. The free credits last about eight minutes, so choose two or three of these steps for a first session.

Tell her: "Portuguese is my first language. Please point out when I mix up 'lend' and 'borrow', say 'stayed' for 'got', or answer 'Yes, I like' instead of 'Yes, I do'."
Ask for ten quick yes/no questions. Answer each with "Yes, I do", "No, I didn't" or "Yes, I have", never with the bare verb.
Tell her about last weekend and how long you have lived in your city. You will need "worked", "watched" and "I've lived here for ...".
Put "red" and "head" in two short sentences, such as "My bag is red" and "My head hurts". If her reply shows she heard the other word, say it again more slowly.
Each time a small fix comes up, repeat the corrected sentence aloud before you answer her next question.

How to get the most from it

Age uses "be"

Say "I'm 32", not "I have 32 years". Portuguese uses "ter" for age; English uses "be".

"There is" and "there are", not "has"

"Tem muita gente" is "There are a lot of people". Start with "there", then "is" or "are".

Check words that look Portuguese

"Pretend", "push", "parents", "library": when an English word looks like a Portuguese one, ask Airi what it means before you rely on it.

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Frequently asked questions

Why do Brazilians say "I have 30 years"?

Because Portuguese uses "ter" (have) for age: "tenho 30 anos". English uses "be": "I'm 30" or "I'm 30 years old". It is transfer from a first language, not carelessness.

Which false friends should Brazilians learn first?

The ones that come up in everyday situations: "push" ("puxe" on a door means pull), "pretend" ("pretender" means intend), "parents" ("parentes" are relatives) and "assist" ("assistir" usually means watch, so say "I watched the game"). When an English word looks like a Portuguese one, you can ask Airi what it means.

Which mistake should I fix first?

Start with the ones that change your meaning: false friends, verb pairs such as "lend" and "borrow", and sounds that turn one word into another, such as "red" and "head". "I have 30 years" is still understood, so it can wait. Airi shows one small fix at a time, so you work on one thing per reply.

Is a Brazilian accent a problem in English?

No. An accent is not a mistake, and many fluent speakers keep theirs. What is worth working on is the small set of habits that change the word a listener hears, such as "red" sounding like "head" or "goal" sounding like "go".

Do these mistakes also apply to speakers of European Portuguese?

Many of the grammar and false-friend points do. The sound section is about Brazilian accents: the added "ee" and the h-like "r" are typical of Brazil, and the two varieties are pronounced very differently.

Can I speak Portuguese with Airi?

No. Airi speaks and corrects in English only. You can tell her that Portuguese is your first language and ask her to watch for particular patterns.

How do I start, and what does it cost?

Airi runs in a web browser on a phone or laptop, so there is nothing to install. You get 600 free credits when you sign up with Google, about eight minutes of speaking. After that there are one-off credit packs of USD 5, 10 or 20 for 2,600, 7,200 or 17,000 credits, and no subscription.

Last updated: 2026-10-03