And I mean everything: from the Instagram post to your coffee receipt. No one is watching or judging you.

We tend to think we’re never quite ready to start reading in a new language. And even though this may be partially true, we forget the ‘I want to learn Portuguese out of respect for the Portuguese’, doesn’t mean reading Saramago...

No, it could be a simple as a street sign: ‘desvio’, remember the ‘s’ before a consonant sounds [sh], the ‘e’ is silent and the ‘o’ sounds like a [uh].

No matter what bank you’ve chosen in Portugal, Novo Banco is the one and only reminding you the adjective comes after the noun. They swap the natural order of things because, well, they can afford it.

Do you eat fruit? Notice the packaging! ‘Manga do Brasil’ tells this much: ‘manga’ ends with an ‘a’ in Portuguese; ‘do’ indicates possession’; ‘Brasil’ doesn’t need a ‘z’; the ‘s’ between two vowels has that effect already!

Find a dialogue in a book:

- Provaste?

- Provei e adorei!

This shows you that by repeating the question verb you agree; helps you practise verb conjugation; and the repetition of the second verb helps you see the pattern of another verb conjugation.

If a children’s or comic book aren’t your cup of tea, try a book you already know. And when in need of a shortcut, check out a book’s synopsis and reviews on wook.pt.

If you have enjoyed this quick lesson and would like to learn more Portuguese outside of the box, then please contact Catarina from The Language Unschool - catarina@thelanguageunschool.com