What is the most difficult thing for foreigners to learn Portuguese?

Learning Portuguese as a second language can be charming and challenging. Although the language is spoken by more than 260 million people worldwide, its grammatical structure, sound, and cultural peculiarities surprise students of several nationalities.

In 2025, with the advancements of globalization, international mobility, and multilingual corporate communication, professionals, students, and foreigners are increasingly interested in learning Brazilian Portuguese. However, some idiomatic aspects remain recurring obstacles.

In this article, GOAL TRANSLATIONS highlights the elements that cause the most questions and confusion among non-native speakers, bringing a clear, interesting, and applicable linguistic perspective on the current context.

1. The complexity of verb tenses

Portuguese has one of the richest verbal structures among Latin languages. To some foreigners, this variety is confusing.

Why is it difficult?

• Portuguese language has multiple verb tenses, including forms that do not exist in English, French, or German.

• Conjugation change for each person (I, you, he...).

• There are verb modes with functions that have no direct equivalent in other languages.

  
  

The biggest challenges:

• Subjunctive (present, past, and future) E.g.: “If I were”, “When you come”, “I hope it works out”.

• Future subjunctive, specific to Portuguese language.

• Verbal periphrases such as “I am doing,” “I will do,” “I have been doing”.

  
  

For many foreigners, distinguishing tense + mode + intention is a long process, and accuracy depends on context.

2. Pronouns change by region

Portuguese is not standard. Each Portuguese-speaking country, and even each Brazilian State, uses different pronouns.

Confusing examples for learners:

• Você x Tu (You) Brazil: coexist, changing the verbal conjugation.

• O senhor / A senhora (Mr. / Mrs.) Formally used, with no clear equivalence in many languages.

• Lhe / Te / Para você (For you) They vary according to the degree of formality and region.

  
  

This diversity makes learning more cultural than just grammatical.

3. Grammatical gender and agreement

For speakers of languages without gender, such as English or Chinese, Portuguese poses a significant challenge: everything has a gender. 

Confusing elements:

• Words ending in -a are not always feminine (e.g.: “o dia”, “o mapa”) (“the day”, “the map”);

• Words ending in -o are not always masculine (“a foto”, “a moto”) (“the photo”, “the bike”);

• Adjectives and articles must agree with the noun: “As casas bonitas”, “Uma oportunidade única” (“The beautiful houses”, “An unique opportunity”).

  
  

This flexibility can seem unpredictable, and memorization demands continuous contact with the language.

4. Sounds that don’t exist in other languages

Brazilian phonetics is one of the biggest challenges observed by foreigners in 2025, especially by the variety of sounds that do not exist in other languages.

The most complicated ones:

• The “ão” sound (as in “pão”).

• The “lh” (an in “trabalhar”).

• The “nh” (as in “sonho”).

• Open and closed vowels: avó x avô, pode x pôde.

  
  

These small differences change the meaning and require listening practice.

5. Idiomatic expressions and cultural metaphors

Popular expressions are part of Brazilian identity and are among the biggest challenges for foreigners.

Common examples that create confusion:

• “Ficar de boa”, which means “To chill out”;

• “Cair a ficha”, which means “It hit me”;

• “Pisar em ovos”, which means “Walking on thin ice”;

• “Chutar o balde”, which means “To throw in the towel”;

• “Deu ruim”, which means “It didn't work”

  
  

These expressions cannot be translated word by word. They demand cultural understanding, something that is highly valued in professional and communication contexts.

6. The flexibility of word order

Portuguese allows sentences to be rearranged without losing their meaning, but with changes in emphasis and intention.

Examples:

• “Ontem eu fui ao cinema.” (“Yesterday, I went to the movie theater”)

• “Eu fui ao cinema ontem.” (“I went to the movie theater yesterday”)

• “Fui ao cinema ontem, eu.” (“I went to the movies yesterday, I”)

  
  

For foreigners who come from languages with a strict word order (like English or German), this freedom can cause uncertainty, especially in formal texts.

7. False cognates: when words mislead

Some Portuguese words sound familiar, but have completely different meanings from languages such as English, Spanish, or French.

Examples:

• “Pasta” (in Portuguese, it’s not an Italian dish; it’s toothpaste, document folder);

• “Pretender” (it’s not ‘pretend’);

• “Embarazada” (in Spanish, means pregnant, not ‘embarrassed’).

  
  

These terms cause common misunderstandings in 2025, especially in corporate and academic settings.

In conclusion: learning Portuguese is a cultural immersion

It’s a complex language, but also one of the richest in nuances, creativity, and expressiveness. For foreigners, learning this language goes beyond studying rules. It is coming into contact with a plural, dynamic, and deeply human culture.

In 2025, with the international expansion of Portuguese and the growing demand for certifications, global remote work, and academic mobility, understanding these challenges became even more relevant.