Lesson 1

Vowels [i, ]; consonants [b, f, , s, , v, z, ] and [m, n] (word-initial or after unstressed oral vowel)

For Beginning Students

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a. Listen. z [ fi s] xis [ i s] giz [ i s] bis [ bi s] vi [ vi ] se [si ] me [mi ] xixi [i i ] Nini [ni ni ] visa [ vi z] cha [ fi ] missa [ mi s] Isa [ i z]

(I) made / have made x [letter] chalk encore (I) have seen if me pee (womans nickname) visa token mass (religious) (womans name)

LESSON

giga [ i ] na missa [n mi s] bife [ bi fi] visse [ vi si] Nice [ ni si] gas [ fi s] bifes [ bi fis] chas [ fi s] missas [ mi ss] sga [ fi z ] cisma [ si zm] cisne [ si zni]

jig at mass steak (he/she) saw [subjunctive] (womans name) amulets steaks tokens masses (he/she) hooks obsession swan

Observe that s is always pronounced [z] when preceding a voiced consonant; thus, in Portuguese we never nd sequences of, say, [sm] or [sl], as in English smile, sleep. b. Listen again. Repeat aloud after each word. c. Read each word aloud. All sounds introduced in this lesson are common to English and Portuguese. The vowel [i] occurs in see, and [] is the weak sound heard at the end of cobra. The vowel [] is written a and is always unstressed. It occurs in post-stress syllables: either at the end of a word, with or without a following s ( cha, chas), or in the next-to-last syllable, when the syllable is unstressed (bbado). Observe that a nal unstressed [i] is normally written e and pronounced very short. When not nal, it is written i or, very frequently, eas in perigo danger, normally pronounced [pi i u]. When stressed, it is always written i, and then it is long, like all stressed vowels in Portuguese. The consonants studied in this lesson occur in English words as follows: [b] (written b) as in bee; [f] (written f ) as in fee; [ ] (written g) as in go; [s] (written in several ways, for example, s, c, , x, nal z, and several combinations) as in see; [] (written ch, x) as in she; [v] (written v) as in violin; [z] (written z, s, x) as in zoo; [ ] (written g, j) as s in usual. The consonants [m] (written m) and [n] (written n), are identical to English m in my and n in no, respectively, when they

lesson 1

occur before a vowel (see Lessons 1620 for their pronunciation when wordnal or before a consonant).

For Advanced Students

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d. Listen. Vi a cha na mesa. Cad o giz? Isa est na missa Nice fez um bife. I saw the token on the table. Where is the chalk? Isa is at mass. Nice cooked a steak.

e. Listen again. Repeat aloud after each sentence. f. Read each sentence aloud.

Cad o giz?