Senhor in Portuguese
Using Senhor in Portuguese is not as hard as you may think. Try answering this: How would you talk when ordering bread from the baker?
O senhor pode me dar dois pães?
Sir, can you give me two breads please?
Você pode me dar dois pães?
Can you give me two breads please?
When do we use Senhor?
We use the word senhor in formal situations. For example, in a business meeting the president uses senhor when he talks to other representatives. However, he would use você during an informal meeting.
We also use senhor in Portuguese to show a certain respect for another person, either due to his/her age, or in order to establish a professional relationship. For example: a taxi driver, a pharmacist, a waiter, a receptionist, a porter, etc. will refer to their clients as Senhor. Notice that the word senhor varies according to gender and number:
|Senhor||Sir / Mr.|
|Senhora||Madam / Mrs. / Ms. / Miss|
When do we use Você?
For Brazilians, changing a situation from formal to informal is very easy. Informality is a natural characteristic of the Brazilian culture and Brazilians are far more comfortable working together within an informal environment. That’s why it’s very common for us to use você in many different situations. Some good examples are: talking to friends, coworkers, family members and classmates.
Now it’s your turn!
In what situation would you use senhor and você? Check the options:
- Falando com seu Avô (__________)
- Falando com sua namorada (__________)
- Falando com seu animal de estimação (__________)
- Falando com o prefeito da sua cidade (__________)
- Falando com uma mulher de 85 anos (__________)
- Falando com o amigo do seu amigo (__________)
- Falando com um desconhecido na rua (__________)
- Falando com o motorista do Uber (__________)
Now we know the use of senhor and você in Portuguese