Greetings and the two 'to be' verbs
Portuguese has two verbs for 'to be' — ser and estar — much like Spanish. Ser is for who you are; estar is for how and where you are right now. We'll meet just a couple of forms today and conjugate both fully in lesson 3. Today's other goal: walk into a room and say hello like someone who lives in Lisbon.
Time-of-day greetings
Bom dia = good morning (literally 'good day'). Boa tarde = good afternoon. Boa noite = good evening / good night. Notice the gender swap: dia is masculine (so bom), but tarde and noite are feminine (so boa). The article-noun gender system is already shaping your greetings.
Casual hellos and goodbyes
Olá = hi. Oi = a softer 'hi', much more common in Brazil than in Portugal. Adeus = goodbye (Portugal's default). Tchau = bye (the Brazilian default, but also used in Portugal among friends). Até logo = see you later. Até amanhã = see you tomorrow.
How are you?
Como estás? = How are you? (informal, to one person). Como está? = same thing, formal or to anyone you address with você. Como estão? = How are you all? Replies: Estou bem = I'm well. Tudo bem = literally 'all well', used both as a question (Tudo bem? = Everything good?) and as an answer.
Ser vs estar — the headline
Ser is for permanent, defining things: who you are, where you're from, your profession. Eu sou portuguesa = I'm Portuguese. Estar is for current state and location: how you feel, where you are right now. Eu estou em casa = I'm at home. Same English 'I am', two different Portuguese verbs. We'll drill the full conjugations in the next lesson.
What's your name?
Como te chamas? = What's your name? (informal, Portugal). Como se chama? = same, formal or with você. Qual é o teu nome? also works ('What is your name?'). Reply: Chamo-me Ana = My name is Ana (literally 'I call myself Ana'). In Brazil this often becomes Meu nome é Ana.
