Ways to say it
| Portuguese | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| belo | /ˈbɛ.lu/ (Brazil) /ˈbɛ.lu/ (Portugal) |
masculine |
| lindo | /ˈlĩ.du/ (Brazil) /ˈlĩ.du/ (Portugal) |
masculine |
The most common ways to express that something is beautiful or attractive involve using belo, lindo or bonito. While belo often carries a poetic, sublime or aesthetic weight, lindo is a very common, everyday word that can also mean 'lovely' or 'wonderful' to express something in a casual, emotive way. Bonito is another frequent choice, often used specifically for physical attractiveness to mean 'pretty' or 'nice-looking'. Other nuances include atraente for 'attractive', radiante for 'radiant' and encantador for 'charming'.
Which one should you use?
Belo is used for more aesthetic or sublime qualities, whereas lindo is the standard everyday word for 'beautiful' or 'pretty'. You might use lindo to describe something as 'lovely' in an emotive sense.
How does it change in a sentence?
Portuguese adjectives change based on gender and number. The feminine form of belo is bela. For the word lindo, the masculine plural is lindos and the feminine plural is lindas.
How do you pronounce it?
Belo is pronounced /ˈbɛ.lu/. It has two syllables and the stress is on the first syllable.
Did you know?
- The word lindo likely traces its roots back to the Latin word legitimus, meaning 'lawful' or 'proper'.
- In some contexts, bonito can be used sarcastically to describe a 'pretty' mess or a 'nice' mistake when someone has done something wrong.
- In Brazil, lindo is frequently used as a term of endearment for partners or children, similar to calling someone 'cutie' or 'sweetheart' in English.
Examples in context
- O sol é belo.The sun is beautiful.This sentence is useful for describing the beauty of the sun using belo.Tatoeba #7847070 by Ricardo14, translation #7847074 by Ricardo14
- O amor é belo.Love is beautiful.This sentence shows how to use belo to describe the concept of love.Tatoeba #11321461 by carlosalberto, translation #11321448 by carlosalberto
- É um belo país.It's a beautiful country.This sentence demonstrates the use of belo when describing a country.Tatoeba #4851850 by bill, translation #37758 by CK
- És belaYou are beautiful
- Esta paisagem é formosaThis landscape is beautiful
- A atriz é deslumbranteThe actress is stunning
- Que vestido lindo!What a beautiful dress!
- Ele é muito gatoHe's very good-looking
- Que dia maravilhosoWhat a beautiful day
- 233 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Mariana and Gabriel are looking at a painting in a museum.
- MarianaOlhe para este quadro, Gabriel.Look at this painting, Gabriel.
- GabrielNossa, que desenho belo!Wow, what a beautiful drawing!
- MarianaAs cores são incríveis.The colors are incredible.
- GabrielÉ um trabalho belo mesmo.It really is a beautiful work.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “beautiful” translations and entries belo, lindo, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries belo, lindo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
