deslocamento
/dez.lo.kaˈmẽ.tu/
The Portuguese word for commute is deslocamento.
The term refers to the act of regularly traveling to and from places such as work or school.
Meaning: to regularly travel to and from work, school etc. (verb)
How do you pronounce it?
The word has five syllables with the stress on the fourth syllable: /dez.lo.kaˈmẽ.tu/.
Did you know?
- In Portugal, a person who commutes long distances may be described as pendular, referring to the swinging motion of a pendulum.
- The root of the word, deslocar, is the same word used when a bone is dislocated in a medical context. Therefore, a 'commute' or 'displacement' shares a linguistic origin with a physical injury.
- In big cities like São Paulo, the 'commute' is often discussed using the word trânsito to describe not just the traffic, but the exhausting act of traveling itself.
Examples in context
- O deslocamento entre a minha casa e o escritório é bastante demorado.The commute between my house and the office is quite long.
- Eu gasto muito tempo no ir e vir entre casa e trabalho.I spend a lot of time commuting between home and work.
Example conversation
Gabriel and Mariana are discussing their morning routines.
- GabrielVocê demora muito no deslocamento?Does your commute take a long time?
- MarianaSim, Gabriel, eu levo quarenta minutos.Yes, Gabriel, it takes me forty minutes.
- GabrielVocê vai de carro ou ônibus?Do you go by car or bus?
- MarianaEu vou de metrô para evitar o trânsito.I take the subway to avoid traffic.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry deslocamento, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
