Learn the correct Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation for words ending in IA. This Brazilian Portuguese lesson will help you avoid very common mistakes when pronouncing words such as democracia, pandemia, etc.

Words that end in IA and do not have a graphic accent

When the word ends in IA and it does not have a graphic accent elsewhere, place the emphasis on that IA at the end. The final IA is the stressed syllable, the stronger syllable of these words.

See the examples below. Watch the video lesson and repeat out loud after me to practice pronunciation.

I will represent the stressed syllable here by making using upper case and blue, using bold font:

• democracIA = democracy
• academIA = fitness center
• delegacIA = police station
• pandemIA = pandemic

Find several Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation lessons on my Portuguese Starter Kit page!

Words that end in IA and have a graphic accent elsewhere

When the word ends in IA and it has a graphic accent elsewhere, place the emphasis where the graphic accent is.

This is a general Portuguese language pronunciation rule: the stronger syllable of a word is where the graphic accent is, when it has one.

Here are examples to practice your pronunciation. I will represent the stressed syllable here by making using upper case and red, using bold font:

• independÊncia = independency
• fluÊncia = fluency
• inteligÊncia = intelligence
• paciÊncia = patience

We offer one-on-one Brazilian Portuguese lessons via video meetings. We have been teaching Portuguese online since 2008! We know what we are doing 😉

Click here to book a Trial Lesson!