A1 · Formal and informal you
Everyday polite phrases
« Thank you » changes with who is speaking, not with who is thanked.
At a glance
- Remember
- obrigado is said by the one thanking, not to the one thanked.
- Form
- por favorplease
- Signal words
- por favor
- se faz favor
- obrigado
- desculpe
- com licença
- Trap
- Wrong:Obrigado!Right:Obrigada!
Your turn
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The form
The forms and what they mean
Each row gives the meaning first, then the form in Portuguese.
| please | por favor |
| please (commoner in Portugal) | se faz favor |
| thank you (man / woman speaking) | obrigado / obrigada |
| sorry (for a mistake) | desculpe |
| excuse me (getting past) | com licença |
| you are welcome | de nada |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
obrigado agrees with the person thanking.
Muito obrigada pela ajuda.Thank you very much for your help.
desculpe is for a mistake.
Desculpe o atraso.Sorry for being late.
com licença is for getting past.
Com licença, posso passar?Excuse me, may I get through?
To somebody you call tu it is desculpa, not desculpe.
Desculpa, não te ouvi.Sorry, I did not hear you.
Example sentences
Um café, se faz favor.An espresso, please.
Obrigado, foi muito amável.Thank you, that was very kind.
Desculpe, enganei-me.Sorry, I made a mistake.
Com licença, é a minha paragem.Excuse me, this is my stop.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
A woman who says obrigado is saying something wrong — even when she is thanking a man. The word is a participle meaning « obliged »; it agrees with whoever feels obliged. Hence obrigada. English gives no warning at all, because « thank you » has no form to choose.
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
Por favor and se faz favor both mean « please ». The second is the commoner one in Portugal and sounds a shade warmer.
Obrigado agrees with the person doing the thanking and not with the person being thanked: a man says obrigado, a woman obrigada — even when she is thanking a man. The word is a participle and means literally « obliged », so it describes the speaker's own state, exactly as « much obliged » would in English if English still inflected it.
Desculpe is the apology for something that went wrong. Com licença is the request to be allowed past or in. English says « excuse me » for both, so the two have to be kept apart deliberately: mixing them up means apologising for breathing or shouldering past with a guilty face.
And the usual answer to thanks is de nada or ora essa — both work, and the second sounds more Portuguese.
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The verbs on this page, in every form: ser · fazer · ouvir · ajudar · enganar-se