How do Brazilians use nossa?
Brazilians start a sentence with Nossa, when something surprises them: the time, how tired they are, a mistake, a lost key. These are lines from the course:
| Portuguese | Meaning | In CiaoSpeak |
|---|---|---|
| Nossa, que horas são? | Gosh, what time is it? (Ana, at the language exchange) | Speak: Language exchange |
| Nossa, estou tão cansado esta semana! O que eu faço? | Gosh, I'm so tired this week! What do I do? | Speak: New job |
| Nossa, cadê a minha chave? Você viu? | Gosh, where's my key? Have you seen it? | Speak: New job |
| Nossa, que buraco enorme ali na rua! Você viu? | Gosh, what a huge pothole there on the street! Have you seen it? | Speak: Your neighbor |
| Nossa, desculpe! A gente resolve isso agora. | Oh no, I'm sorry! We'll sort it out right away. | Speak: Returning a shirt |
Is nossa rude or religious?
No. Nossa! comes from Nossa Senhora! ("Our Lady!"), but today it's just "wow", fine with anyone, including at work. Nossa Senhora! in full is a stronger "good heavens!".
| Portuguese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Nossa, que lindo! | Wow, how beautiful! |
| Nossa Senhora! | Good heavens! (stronger) |
What does nossa mean as "our"?
As a regular word, nossa means "our" before a feminine noun, and nosso before a masculine one: a nossa casa, o nosso carro.
| Portuguese | Meaning | In CiaoSpeak |
|---|---|---|
| Esta é a Júlia, nossa nova gerente. | This is Júlia, our new manager. | Unit 9 |
| o nosso carro | our car | Not in the course |
How can you practice Brazilian Portuguese out loud?
Practice it in short, real exchanges, out loud. CiaoSpeak's Brazilian Portuguese course teaches everyday words like Nossa! with a recording in a Brazilian accent, and in the Speak tab people across Brazil (a São Paulo baker, a Rio ride-app driver, your language-exchange partner Ana) ask you one question at a time. You answer by voice or typing, and the app tells you whether a Brazilian would understand you. Lessons are free; in the Speak tab, today's questions (up to five a day) are free too, and CiaoSpeak+ adds practice in any scene whenever you like. More words like this one: the Brazilian slang list.