lêmure
/ˈlẽ.mu.ɾi/masculine
The English word lemur is lêmure in Portuguese.
lêmure is a masculine noun used to refer to a strepsirrhine primate of the infraorder Lemuriformes, superfamily Lemuroidea.
Meaning: strepsirrhine primate of the infraorder Lemuriformes, superfamily Lemuroidea (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
To form the plural lêmures, add -s to the end of the word.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 3 syllables, with the stress on the 1st syllable. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈlẽ.mu.ɾi/.
Did you know?
- The Portuguese word lêmure shares its roots with the Latin word for 'ghosts' or 'spirits of the dead'.
- The word lêmure is a learned borrowing, meaning it was adopted into Portuguese from a written academic source rather than through common oral trade.
- In Portuguese, the word lêmure uses a circumflex accent on the first 'e' to indicate a closed vowel sound and a stressed syllable.
Examples in context
- No zoo, podemos ver diversos animais, como o lêmure.At the zoo, we can see different animals, like the lemur.
- Olha, um mico-leão! Ah, não, é um lêmure!Look, a Golden Lion Tamarin! Oh no, it's a lemur!
- Eu vi um lêmure no zoológico.I saw a lemur at the zoo.
- O lêmure tem olhos muito grandes.The lemur has very large eyes.
- Aquele lêmure está comendo frutas.That lemur is eating fruit.
Example conversation
Rodrigo and Beatriz are visiting a wildlife sanctuary.
- RodrigoOlha aquele lêmure no alto da árvore!Look at that lemur up in the tree!
- BeatrizEle é muito bonito, Rodrigo.He is very beautiful, Rodrigo.
- RodrigoVocê acha que ele é agitado?Do you think he is restless?
- BeatrizSim, ele parece muito ativo.Yes, he seems very active.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “lemur” translations and entries lêmure, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries lêmure, CC BY-SA 4.0.
