Ways to say it
| Portuguese | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| enganoso | /ẽ.ɡaˈno.zu/ (Brazil) /ĩ.ɡaˈno.zu/ (Brazil) |
masculine |
| ilusório | /i.luˈzɔ.ɾju/ (Brazil) /i.luˈzɔ.ɾju/ (Portugal) |
masculine |
The word is used to describe something that has a tendency to deceive or trick someone. While enganoso implies a deception or a tendency to trick, the related form ilusório refers more specifically to something that is illusory or based on an illusion or mirage.
Which one should you use?
enganoso implies a deception or a tendency to trick someone, whereas ilusório often refers to something that is illusory or based on an illusion or mirage.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Brazil, the informal term furado(a) is often used to describe something that is misleading, false or full of holes.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form enganoso is the masculine singular form. Use the feminine form enganosa when the noun being described is feminine. For multiple masculine or mixed-gender nouns, use the masculine plural form enganosos. For multiple feminine nouns, use the feminine plural form enganosas.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has four syllables, with the stress on the third syllable: /ẽ.ɡaˈno.zu/.
Did you know?
- While enganoso describes a misleading thing, the verb enganar is frequently used in the reflexive form enganar-se to simply mean 'to be mistaken' without any intent to deceive.
- If you want to describe a scam or a misleading deal in Brazil, you might call it a 'negócio furado', literally a 'punctured deal'.
- In Portuguese, the suffix -oso is used to turn nouns or verbs into adjectives of abundance, similar to the English -ous in 'dangerous' or 'mountainous'.
Examples in context
- O título é enganoso.The title is misleading.This sentence shows how to use enganoso to describe a title.Tatoeba #8051769 by jvlopes91, translation #4500547 by CK
- O gráfico é enganoso.The graph is misleading.This sentence shows how to use enganoso to describe a graph.Tatoeba #11335930 by DavidDias, translation #6275300 by megamanenm
- É enganoso.It's misleading.This sentence shows how to use enganoso to describe an unspecified 'it'.Tatoeba #5987928 by islandisto, translation #1486889 by Spamster
- A propaganda daquele produto é enganadora.The advertising for that product is misleading.
- O político fez uma afirmação falaciosa durante o discurso.The politician made a misleading statement during the speech.
- Não caia na enrolação do vendedor, essa oferta é farsa.Don't fall for the misleading talk of the salesperson, that offer is a scam.
- As promessas do governo são todas furadas.The government's promises are all misleading.
- Chega de embromação, explique as coisas claramente.Enough with the misleading talk, explain things clearly.
Example conversation
Lucas and Juliana are discussing a product advertisement.
- LucasEste anúncio parece enganoso, não acha?This ad seems misleading, don't you think?
- JulianaSim, a foto é bem diferente do produto.Yes, the photo is very different from the product.
- LucasO preço prometido também é enganoso.The promised price is also misleading.
- JulianaVamos procurar outra loja então.Let's look for another store then.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “misleading” translations and entries enganoso, ilusório, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
