Is Portuguese Easy To Learn If You Speak Spanish?
The surprising truth...
- February 4, 2025
- By Josseline Jiménez
You might think that, as a Spanish speaker, learning Portuguese won’t be a challenge due to their similarities.
And while there is some truth to this, there are several important factors you should consider before embarking on learning Portuguese.
Let’s find out together below the answer to the question: is Portuguese easy to learn if you speak Spanish?

Table of Content
Introduction: Why Portuguese and Spanish Are Similar
First, it’s crucial to understand why these two languages are so similar.
According to information published by the National Autonomous University of Mexico, both Portuguese and Spanish evolved from Vulgar Latin, the language spoken during the Roman Empire.
Being Romance languages, they share grammatical structures, vocabulary, and phonetic features.
However, despite these similarities, both languages have taken different paths over the centuries, influenced by various historical events and linguistic developments. This has led to key differences that might surprise you when you start learning Portuguese.
How Can Similarities Between these languages facilitate learning or not?
Advantages
On the one hand, there is the large number of similar words that both languages share.
According to information published on the Bureau Works website, Portuguese and Spanish have approximately 89% lexical similarity. This means that almost 90% of words have equivalent forms in both languages.
For this reason, when reading or viewing information written in Portuguese, a Spanish speaker can understand much of the content… or so it would seem.
On the other hand, there is the grammatical structure. Although they are not the same, they are similar enough to make it easier to understand the rules of the language. This aspect is a positive point that simplifies the process of learning.
Finally, there is the pronunciation. Although Portuguese has unique characteristics, it is familiar to Spanish speakers. Like Spanish, Portuguese is a syllabic language, which means that its pronunciation tends to be very faithful to the way the words are written.
This consistency can make learning and understanding Portuguese a lot easier for a Spanish speaker.
Disadvantages
Let’s start with some information: in the book Português para Estrangeiros by Almeida Filho, it is stated that around 30% of the similarities between the Spanish and Portuguese languages correspond to false friends.
But what is a false friend?
A false friend is a word that has a similar spelling and pronunciation in two languages, but whose meanings are completely different.
Here are some common examples between Spanish and Portuguese from Lingo Pie:
Embarazada
In Spanish, “embarazada” is an adjective meaning “pregnant.” It refers to a woman who is expecting a baby.
In Portuguese, “embaraçada” is a false friend it means “embarrassed” rather than “pregnant.” The correct Portuguese word for “pregnant” is “grávida.”
Rato
In Spanish, “rato” is a noun meaning “a short period of time.” It is often used in informal conversations to refer to an unspecified but relatively short amount of time.
In Portuguese, “rato” is a false friend it means “rat” (the animal) rather than “a short period of time.” The correct Portuguese phrase for “a short time” is “um tempo” or “um momento.”
Borracha
In Spanish, “borracha” is an adjective meaning “drunk”.
In Portuguese, “borracha” can mean “rubber” or “eraser”. It is not used as an adjective to mean “drunk” as in Spanish. Instead, the Portuguese equivalent of “drunk” would be “bêbado” or “embriagado”.
Examples:
● Spanish: Estoy borracha después de tomar demasiado tequila. I am drunk after having too much tequila.
● Portuguese: Preciso de uma borracha para apagar o lápis. I need a rubber to erase the pencil.
These false friends can cause funny and sometimes even embarrassing confusions in real life if you don’t use them correctly. It’s common for speakers to mix up meanings without realizing it, which can lead to unexpected situations and funny misunderstandings. That’s why it’s essential to pay attention to the context and become familiar with these differences in order to communicate more accurately and avoid awkward moments.
According to a document published by the European Commission, there are approximately 300 false friends between both languages.
Another disadvantage lies in the sounds exclusive to Portuguese that do not exist in Spanish. Portuguese includes guttural and nasal sounds that can be challenging for Spanish speakers, especially when trying to pronounce words correctly while learning the language.
This often makes learning a little bit more challenging.
The Opinion From Our Portuguese and Spanish Teachers
Although it may seem contradictory, the fact that Spanish and Portuguese are so similar can make learning Portuguese difficult at first.
This is because, rather than perceiving Portuguese as a completely new language, we tend to interpret its words and sounds through the filter of Spanish. In this case, it is essential to develop a kind of “linguistic discrimination”, focusing on identifying the specific differences in vocabulary and pronunciation.
In other words, the similarity between the two languages can cause some confusion at first.
However, once you get past this initial stage where you feel like you are speaking a strange version of your own language, you begin to become familiar with the particularities of Portuguese.
From there, learning becomes more fluid, and the differentiation between the two languages is consolidated naturally in the acquisition process.
The Answer To The Question: Is Portuguese Easy To Learn If You Speak Spanish?
If we take a general look at the pros and cons of learning Portuguese as a Spanish speaker, we could say that the initial stage can be somewhat challenging.
At first, it may take some time to clearly identify the differences and similarities between the two languages.
However, once you overcome this first phase, the learning process becomes significantly easier compared to starting from a completely different language.
Conclusion
In summary, despite occasional confusions and false friends, the fact that both languages belong to the Romance family and share a similar structure plays a much bigger role in facilitating the learning process. This linguistic closeness makes Portuguese feel familiar to Spanish speakers, reducing the drastic nature of the transition and making it more intuitive to grasp.
Ultimately, it is fair to say that knowing Spanish already gives you a considerable advantage when learning Portuguese.

Josseline Jiménez is working together with the Tobian Language School through the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs program.