Portuguese Year 2: Which letter do I write? Rules that decide
Portuguese, Year 2 (Portugal): The same letter can make different sounds: the rules for c/qu, g/gu, ç, r/rr and m before p and b help you choose.
Rules that choose the letter
A letter can make different sounds, and one sound can be written in several ways. That is why there are rules. The sound of «casa» (house) and «gato» (cat) is written «c» and «g» before a, o, u, and «qu» and «gu» before e, i: «queijo» (cheese), «guitarra» (guitar; here the u is silent). The strong r sound between vowels is written «rr»: «carro» (car). And before p and b you write «m»: «campo» (field), «tampa» (lid).
More sounds than letters
We speak with more sounds than the alphabet has letters. So some letters change their sound depending on the letter that comes next: the «c» of «casa» (house) does not sound like the «c» of «cebola» (onion). And some sounds can be written in more than one way. The rules tell you which to choose. That way, whoever reads your word understands it at once, without having to guess.
Writing «guitarra»
You want to write «guitarra» (guitar). Step 1: Say it slowly: gui-tar-ra. Step 2: The first sound is the one in «gato» (cat). Step 3: Then comes «i». If you write «gi», it is read as in «girafa» (giraffe). So you add «u»: «gui». Step 4: At the end, the strong r sound sits between two vowels: it is written «rr». Step 5: Write «guitarra» and read it quietly to check.
Writing only what you hear
It is natural to write what you hear. But one letter can have several sounds and one sound can have several letters. And one letter more or less changes the word: «caro» (expensive) and «carro» (car); «casa» (house) and «caça» (game, what the hunter catches). Before you write, look at the next vowel and at the place in the word where you are.
Where you use these rules
You use these rules every time you write: in a dictation, in a message to your grandparents or in a caption for a drawing. They also help with the dictionary: if you look for «jirafa» and cannot find it, try with «g»: «girafa» (giraffe). After writing, read it quietly and ask yourself: do I read the word I meant?
Test what you learned
Which of these spelling rules is right?
- a) Before p and b you write «n», as in «canpo»
- b) The letter «ç» is written at the start of words, as in «çapato»
- c) Before p and b you write «m», as in «campo» (field) and «tampa» (lid)
- d) The sound of «gato» is written «gu» before a, o, u, as in «guato»
Correct answer: c) Before p and b you write «m», as in «campo» (field) and «tampa» (lid) — Yes: before p and b you write «m». That is why it is «campo», «tampa» and «bomba».
What is the right way to write the opposite of «frio» (cold)?
- a) quente (hot)
- b) cente
- c) qente
Correct answer: a) quente (hot) — Yes: the sound of «casa» before «e» is written «qu». So it is «quente».
Marta wants to write «carro» (car), but writes «caro». What happens?
- a) Nothing changes: it is still read «carro»
- b) It becomes another word: «caro» means «costing a lot of money»
- c) It becomes a word that does not exist
Correct answer: b) It becomes another word: «caro» means «costing a lot of money» — Yes: one «r» instead of two gives «caro» (expensive). One letter more or less can change the word.
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