Portuguese Language Guide & Audio app review: learn the basics

Introduction

Are you planning on traveling to Portugal? Would you like to learn how to speak Portuguese? Perhaps you already speak small amounts of the language and just want to brush up on your knowledge. The Portuguese Language Guide & Audio app is meant to help you through all the basics of the language. These language guides are ideal to study before traveling abroad or to use while you're there visiting the country.

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Don't Let Language be a Barrier

Just because you are traveling to a country where they speak a different language than you doesn't mean language has to be a barrier. With just a little preparation you can ensure you are well-armed to not only speak but understand basic words. Learn how to say simple words like "thank you," "please," and then more involved things such as "where is the bathroom" or directions to a certain location. Just by learning simple words such as these it can make your trip a lot more enjoyable.

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This guide offers you basic phrases and a conversational language lesson with a local. WorldNomads.com is known for its language guides, offering guides in 25 languages now. Because of this experience in the area of languages you know you’ll be getting the content you need and want while traveling.

 

Using the App

It’s important to understand what this app isn’t. This isn’t going to allow you to speak fluently in Portuguese but what it gives you is the basics you’ll need. From there you can of course master the language and build upon your knowledge.

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When it comes to using the app I find the user interface has been designed to be quick and simple. This means while you’re traveling you aren’t having to mess with a bunch of features and menus just to find a quick answer.

Launch the app to view a menu of phrases which are introductions, places to stay, directions and transport, travel safety, and numbers (one to 10). Each of these show you the spelling and give you the audio of how to say the word(s). There are also categories of phrases that show you the spelling but don’t have audio of the translation. The “Lesson” is a lot of fun and gives you an overview of a typical conversation that you can learn from.

As an added bonus the Q&A section provides a number of questions that have been answered by locals and travelers familiar with Portugal.

 

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Simple and clean user interface
• A menu of phrases
• Some phrases include audio translation

 

Cons

• Not all phrases include audio translation
• The amount of translations is quite limited
• It would be nice if you could slow down the audio translations

 

Final Words

For me the Portuguese Language Guide app feels like a great starting point for learning the language but unfortunately it doesn’t feel complete to me. There just aren’t enough words to be able to use this app as your sole language guide while visiting the country.