são
/ˈsɐ̃w̃/
The word sao is a misspelling of the Portuguese word for are, which is são.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈsɐ̃w̃/
What mistakes should you avoid?
The spelling sao is a common mistake for the third-person plural form of the verb ser (to be), which must be written with a tilde as são.
Did you know?
- In Portuguese, são is used to tell time for any number above one. To say 'they are two o'clock', you use são duas horas.
- The adjective são meaning 'healthy' is a cognate of the English word 'sane'.
- Because of the tilde, the word são is pronounced with a nasal vowel, a sound that does not exist in English and is often missed by beginners.
Examples in context
- Estava em São Paulo em fevereiro.In February, I was in Sao Paulo.This sentence shows the use of são in the name of a city.Tatoeba #882766 by alexmarcelo, translation #1735123 by wwkudu
- Visitamos o maior museu de São Paulo.We visited Sao Paulo's largest museum.Tatoeba #1072661 by alexmarcelo, translation #2617167 by Dejo
- São Paulo é a maior cidade da América do Sul.Sao Paulo is the biggest city in South America.Tatoeba #1534221 by alexmarcelo, translation #9241104 by DJ_Saidez
- 8 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Felipe and Mariana are looking at a photo of their friends.
- FelipeQuem são eles?Who are they?
- MarianaSão os meus primos.They are my cousins.
- FelipeEles são muito simpáticos.They are very nice.
- MarianaSim, eles são ótimos.Yes, they are great.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry são, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries são, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
