Learn European Portuguese Step by Step
At Cut the Mustard, we believe learning Portuguese should feel exciting, doable, and totally worth it. That’s why we’ve created a structured, step-by-step program designed to guide you from your very first words all the way to confidently expressing yourself in more complex situations. Whether you’re starting from scratch or picking up where you left off, we’ve got you covered! Each level (A0 to B2) is broken down into smaller, manageable steps (like A1.1, A1.2, etc.) so you can move at your own pace and celebrate progress along the way. In every module, you’ll build vocabulary, improve pronunciation, and gain confidence through activities focused on listening, speaking, and real conversation.
Quickview
A0 – Absolute Beginner
Welcome! If you’re completely new to Portuguese, this is the perfect place to begin. You’ll start building a solid foundation so you can feel confident moving on to A1.
You’ll learn to:
- Greet and say goodbye in simple ways
- Talk about the weather
- Use the days of the week, months, and special occasions
- Say the alphabet and numbers (how they sound and how to write them)
- Introduce yourself: name, age, nationality
- Practice basic pronunciation and learn the difference between masculine/feminine and singular/plural
A1.1 – Beginner
You're getting comfortable with basic phrases, and now it's time to build on that.
You’ll learn to:
- Use more natural, native-sounding greetings and expressions
- Dive deeper into the alphabet and numbers
- Introduce yourself and others using everyday phrases
- Talk about services in town and what they offer
- Locate places and objects using prepositions
- Describe simple daily routines using present tense verbs
A1.2 – Beginner+
You're starting to express yourself! This stage helps you use basic language confidently.
You’ll learn to:
- Talk about your daily life, habits, and hobbies
- Link sentences with connectors like e, ou, mas, porque
- Invite, accept, decline, and ask questions
- Talk about transport and getting around (prepositions: para, a, em, de)
- Practice regular and some irregular verbs in the present tense
- Discuss day-to-day topics and describe simple events
A1.3 – Upper Beginner
Now you’re able to have longer conversations and express more ideas.
You’ll learn to:
- Describe your home and different spaces using specific vocabulary
- Expand your use of regular and irregular verbs in the present tense
- Talk about travel and your preferences
- Learn vocabulary related to clothing and seasons
- Use adjectives with different degrees
- Make simple plans using ir + infinitivo
- Build more expressive sentences with connectors and structure
A2.1 – Elementary
You're starting to interact more easily in Portuguese, especially when others speak slowly and clearly.
You’ll learn to:
- Talk about life events - birthday party (make arrangements, invite, ask questions)
- Use pronomes indefinidos variáveis (algum, nenhum) and invaráiveis (ninguém, alguém) and know the difference between todo and tudo.
- Talk about routines, current actions, and future plans (normalmente, agora, no futuro)
- Move from present to past tense (pretérito perfeito with regular verbs)
- Describe a trip using pretérito perfeito (regular verbs)
- Share the step-by-step of a project - talk about how something started
- Begin using irregular verbs in the past: ser, estar, ter, ir
- Practice saying and understanding years like 1575, 1989, 2006
- Irregular verbs in pretérito perfeito simples.
A2.2 – Elementary+
You're now using both regular and irregular past tenses with confidence, and ready to explore new themes.
You’ll learn to:
- Improve fluency to understand faster, native-like speech
- Use irregular verbs in pretérito perfeito - practice
- Talk on the phone and leave messages- telephone expressions
- Write notes and simple reminders
- Learn vocabulary for body parts
- Health: describe symptoms, verbo doer
- Visit the doctor or pharmacy and understand basic instructions, ask and/ or answer questions
- Use reflexive verbs (levanto-me, dás-lhe) and prepositions like para, por, etc.
- Some sessions are dedicated to speaking practice
A2.3 – Upper Elementary
You can now talk about the past and understand people at a faster pace. Time to level up!
You’ll learn to:
- Describe people’s personalities using adjectives and idiomatic expressions
- Use the imperative to give instructions, make suggestions, and follow recipes (regular + irregular verbs)
- Relate events using presente, pretérito perfeito, and futuro
- Introducing the pretérito imperfeito (ex: queria, gostava, adorava) to talk about free time activities that you’d wish to do again.
- Talk about childhood, growing up - pretérito imperfeito
- Compare and contrast different past tenses: pretérito perfeito vs. imperfeito.
- Some sessions are dedicated to speaking practice
B1.1 – Pre-Intermediate
You're becoming a storyteller! Let’s work on expressing yourself clearly in more complex situations.
You’ll learn to:
- Explain delays and apologize over the phone or in writing
- Tell a story with a clear timeline (incidents, accidents)
- Understand weather reports and related vocabulary
- Use a mix of tenses: Presente do Indicativo, Pretérito Perfeito, Pretérito Imperfeito, Pretérito Mais-Que-Perfeito Composto (tinha estado, tinha ficado)
- Work with verb-preposition combinations
- Use pronouns (direct/indirect), their placement, and contractions
- Ask and talk about Portuguese culture and expressions
- Some sessions are dedicated to speaking practice (using prompts)
B1.2 – Pre-Intermediate+
You're starting to reflect, compare, and explain. This stage helps you sharpen your skills.
You’ll learn to:
- Talk about life experiences and education systems
- Share cultural insights and comment on Portuguese proverbs
- Make appointments and requests by phone
- Solve conflicts, give opinions, and report daily events
- Write different types of texts: formal/informal letters, notes, emails
- Use reported speech (direct and indirect)
- Understand written and spoken news
- Present news clearly and with structure
- Use grammar tools: Determiners, indefinite pronouns, plural forms, Adverbs (tão, tanto, muito), Prepositions with verbs (de, em, entre, a, com, por)
- Use Voice: active, passive (of action and state)
- Some sessions are dedicated to speaking practice ( using prompts)
B1.3 – Upper Pre-Intermediate
At this point, you’re really expressing yourself with confidence and depth.
You’ll learn to:
- Understand and report formal texts and news stories
- Use polite language: invitations, suggestions, uncertainty with the conditional mood
- Talk about jobs - explain details ( Cv and cover letter, interviews)
- Describe travel plans and talk about tourist destinations
- Present your country using numbers, statistics, and cultural facts
- Explain the meaning of Portuguese proverbs
- Master verb forms: futuro Imperfeito do Indicativo, Modo Condicional, Infinitivo Pessoal, Impessoal, and Composto
- Use correct prepositions and interrogatives: quem, onde, que, quanto, quando
- Some sessions are dedicated to speaking practice (using prompts)
Ready to Start?
We keep things fun and simple, so learning feels natural and progress becomes part of your routine.
Join us at Cut the Mustard, and let’s grow your Portuguese step by step—with joy, clarity, and a big smile!
Email us at [email protected] for more information