How to use the hyphen in Portuguese

How to use the hyphen in Portuguese Posted by Adir on Feb 26, 2013 in Learning

Olá!

After the 2009 spelling reform, Portuguese has other (and easier) ways to use the hyphen. Let’s see how it is done now.

1. Different vowels – Don’t use the hyphen

infraestrutura
extraoficial
autoestrada
semiárido
ultraelevado

2. Same vowels – Use the hyphen

anti-inflamatório
auto-observação
micro-ondas
contra-argumento

3. Same consonants – Use the hyphen

sub-base
super-requintado
inter-racial
inter-relacionar
hiper-realista

4. Vowel + R and S – Don’t use the hyphen – duplicate the consonants: RR and SS

antissocial
autossuficiente
ultrassonografia
autorretrato
contrarreforma
ultrarrápido

5. With the word “bem” – Use the hyphen

bem-vindo
bem-nascido
bem-educado
bem-humorado

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English / Spanish teacher and translator for over 20 years. I have been blogging since 2007 and I am also a professional singer in my spare time.