How to Use MUITO in Portuguese: Stop Saying “muita bonita”

Have you ever found yourself saying “muita obrigada” or “muita bonita” in Portuguese? If so, you’re not alone. It’s a common mistake that can be easily fixed! Today, you’ll learn how to use muito in Portuguese correctly and stop making this mistake.

Before we dive into the details, check out this video I made in 2010 explaining the use of muito (oh, I was so young back then!). Although the video is older, it complements the updated information in this blog post.

Using Muito in Portuguese to Emphasize or Intensify

In Portuguese, when you use muito to mean “very”, it should always be muito. Just like that: masculine singular, no matter who or what you are talking about.

For example, “muito bonita,” “muito boa,” and “muito obrigada.”

A handy trick to remember is: When muito means very, it does not vary.

Here are examples:

1. Ana é muito bonita. (Ana is very beautiful.)
2. Ana e Camila são muito bonitas . (Ana and Camila are very beautiful.)
3. Todas as minhas amigas são muito legais. (All my friends are very nice.)
4. Joana e Pedro falam muito rápido. (Joana and Pedro speak very fast.)
5. As festas de carnaval são muito animadas. (The carnival parties are a lot of fun.)
6. Muito obrigada por estar aqui! (Thank you very much for being here!)

Muito can also be translated to English as “a lot” or “very much” when used to modify a verb. In other words, it is used to emphasize or intensify an action. Muito is also invariable in this case.

For instance:

1. Marina e Felipe falam muito. (Marina and Felipe talk a lot/very much.) → muito modifies the verb falar
2. Roberta trabalha muito. (Roberta works a lot/very much.) → muito modifies the verb trabalhar
3. Eles pensam muito na família. (They think a lot/very much about their family.) → muito modifies the verb pensar

If you are comfortable with grammar terms, notice that in all the examples above muito is an adverb that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb.

If you don’t like grammar, that is fine. Just remember that when muito means very, it does not vary.

Using Muito in Portuguese to Indicate Quantity

On the other hand, when muito modifies a noun to indicate quantity, it varies in gender (feminine and masculine) and number (plural and singular) to agree with the word it refers to.

In other words, when you are talking about quantity, muito will vary to agree with whatever you have many, much, or a lot of.

For instance:

1. Paulo tem muitas camisetas. (Paulo has many t-shirts.)
2. Eu tenho muitos livros. (I have many books.)
3. José tem muita paciência com Antônia. (José has a lot of patience with Antônia.)
4. Você colocou muito sal na comida. (You put too much salt in the food.)
5. Você colocou muita pimenta na comida. (You put too much pepper in the food.)
6. Há muitas pessoas na sala. (There are many people in the room.)
7. Ele tem muitas ideias interessantes. (He has many interesting ideas.)

So, keep in mind:

When muito means very, it does not vary.

So, when you want to intensify something (say it is “very” something), always use muito without variation, no matter who or what you’re talking about.

When talking about quantity, muito will vary according to the gender and number of the word it refers to, or what you have many, much, or a lot of.

I hope this tip helps clarify this common confusion to further improve your Portuguese 💪🏼🇧🇷

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