Look good, speak better: clothes and fashion vocabulary in Portuguese (A2)
Ready to shop (or compliment someone’s outfit) in Portuguese? In this lesson, you’ll learn essential clothing words, color adjectives, and real phrases for trying on clothes and asking for sizes. We’ll keep it practical, with short dialogs and quick exercises.
Essential clothing words
Here are common items you’ll see in stores and hear in everyday conversation. We show both Brazilian Portuguese (BR) and European Portuguese (PT) where useful.
camiseta (BR) / t-shirt (PT)
t-shirt
noun
Eu quero uma camiseta branca.
I want a white t-shirt.
camisa
shirt (button-down)
noun
A camisa azul é bonita.
The blue shirt is nice.
calças
pants / trousers
noun
Onde estão as calças pretas?
Where are the black pants?
vestido
dress
noun
Ela gosta de vestidos longos.
She likes long dresses.
saia
skirt
noun
A saia verde ficou ótima.
The green skirt looked great.
sapatos
shoes
noun
Preciso de sapatos confortáveis.
I need comfortable shoes.
tênis (BR) / ténis ou sapatilhas (PT)
sneakers
noun
Ele comprou tênis novos.
He bought new sneakers.
casaco
coat / jacket (general)
noun
Hoje vou levar o casaco.
Today I’ll take the coat/jacket.
jaqueta (BR) / blusão (PT)
jacket
noun
A jaqueta preta é cara.
The black jacket is expensive.
blusa
blouse / top
noun
Esta blusa é de algodão.
This blouse is made of cotton.
moletom (BR) / sweatshirt
sweatshirt / hoodie (with capuz = hood)
noun
Comprei um moletom com capuz.
I bought a hoodie.
cinto
belt
noun
Preciso de um cinto novo.
I need a new belt.
guarda-chuva
umbrella
noun
Leva o guarda-chuva, vai chover.
Take the umbrella, it’s going to rain.
Cultural note: BR vs PT words
Sneakers: BR = tênis; PT = ténis or sapatilhas.
Hoodie: BR = moletom com capuz; PT often says sweatshirt/blusão com capuz.
Sizes: BR often uses P/M/G (pequeno/médio/grande); many stores also use S/M/L.
Colors that match your outfit
Color adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun. Some colors (like azul) change in the plural, others (like verde) use the same masculine/feminine but change for plural.
Portuguese
camiseta branca; camisa branca; calças pretas
white t-shirt; white shirt; black pants
Portuguese
vestido vermelho; vestidos vermelhos
red dress; red dresses
Portuguese
casaco azul; casacos azuis
blue coat; blue coats
Portuguese
saia verde; saias verdes
green skirt; green skirts
Eu quero camisa branca.
Ela comprou calças pretas.
Você gosta de vestido vermelho?
In the store: phrases you’ll really use
When you shop, these phrases help you ask for sizes, try things on, and pay.
Portuguese
Posso experimentar?
Can I try it on?
Portuguese
Onde fica o provador?
Where is the fitting room?
Portuguese
Tem este modelo no tamanho M?
Do you have this model in size M?
Portuguese
Quanto custa?
How much is it?
Portuguese
Ficou bem em mim.
Lit: It stayed well on me.
It looked good on me.
Portuguese
Aceita cartão?
Do you accept card?
💬Mini-dialog: No provador
Tip: experimentar is for clothes; provar is for tasting food.
vestir
presente do indicativo
Irregular
Pronoun
Conjugation
eu
visto
tu
vestes
ele/ela/você
veste
nós
vestimos
vocês
vestem
eles/elas
vestem
Eu uso uma camisa azul, depois visto uma calça preta.→Eu uso uma camisa azul, depois visto calças pretas.calças is usually plural for pants.
Sentence practice
Reorder the words to make natural sentences.
🔠Put the words in order
Start with pronoun + verb
🔠Put the words in order
Store question: 'Is there this model in size M?'
Style and materials
A few extra words to talk about what things are made of and how they look.
Portuguese
algodão (cotton), lã (wool), couro (leather), seda (silk)
cotton, wool, leather, silk
Portuguese
É de algodão. É de couro.
It’s made of cotton. It’s made of leather.
Portuguese
estampado; liso; confortável; elegante
patterned; plain; comfortable; elegant
guardaverb root: to guard-hyphenchuvanoun: rain
Quick quiz: store-savvy Portuguese
🧠Shop talk check
correct
Final practice: articles + colors
Fill in the correct article. Remember gender and number.
Eu preciso de sapatos marrons (BR).
Ela quer saia amarela.
casacos azuis são caros.
Wrap-up
You learned clothing words, color agreement, and practical store phrases—plus the difference between usar and vestir. Keep noticing gender and number: the noun usually sets the form for colors and articles.
Next time you’re window-shopping in São Paulo or Lisbon, try a mini-conversation: Pergunte o preço, peça o tamanho e diga “Posso experimentar?”. A little practice goes a long way—ficou bem em você! Keep speaking, keep styling.