Registro: norma culta escrita × português brasileiro falado
Registro: norma culta escrita × português brasileiro falado means “Register: the diglossia between written cultured Portuguese and everyday spoken Brazilian”. Educated Brazilians command two coexisting norms and switch between them by situation, not two right-and-wrong versions of the language. Formation: fala (Me dá / a gente foi / tem / vi ele / dei pra ele / vou fazer) × escrita (Dê-me / nós fomos / há / vi-o / dei-lhe / farei)
Register: the diglossia between written cultured Portuguese and everyday spoken Brazilian
C2Formation
fala (Me dá / a gente foi / tem / vi ele / dei pra ele / vou fazer) × escrita (Dê-me / nós fomos / há / vi-o / dei-lhe / farei)
Explanation
Educated Brazilians command two coexisting norms and switch between them by situation, not two right-and-wrong versions of the language. In everyday speech you say 'Me dá', 'a gente foi', 'tem', 'vi ele', 'dei pra ele', 'a casa que eu moro' and 'vou fazer'; in formal writing the same ideas become 'Dê-me', 'nós fomos', 'há', 'vi-o', 'dei-lhe', 'a casa em que/onde moro' and 'farei'. These spoken forms are not mistakes: they are the natural, unmarked register that any native uses with friends and family. The written forms belong to job interviews, formal emails, exams and official documents. So learn the spoken forms to sound like a real Brazilian and the written ones to write well and pass tests — and, above all, learn to read the situation and shift register. Spanish speakers should note that this gap is wider than in Spanish, where the written and spoken languages sit much closer together.
Examples
Note
Rule of thumb: speak the 'fala' forms, write the 'escrita' forms. Mixing them jars — 'Dê-me um minutinho aí' sounds stiff, while 'Me dá mais um instante, por favor' in a formal email reads as too casual. Keep the whole sentence in one register.
FAQ
Registro: norma culta escrita × português brasileiro falado — what does it mean and how is it used?
Register: the diglossia between written cultured Portuguese and everyday spoken Brazilian. Educated Brazilians command two coexisting norms and switch between them by situation, not two right-and-wrong versions of the language. In everyday speech you say 'Me dá', 'a gente foi', 'tem', 'vi ele', 'dei pra ele', 'a casa que eu moro' and 'vou fazer'; in formal writing the same ideas become 'Dê-me', 'nós fomos', 'há', 'vi-o', 'dei-lhe', 'a casa em que/onde moro' and 'farei'. These spoken forms are not mistakes: they are the natural, unmarked register that any native uses with friends and family. The written forms belong to job interviews, formal emails, exams and official documents. So learn the spoken forms to sound like a real Brazilian and the written ones to write well and pass tests — and, above all, learn to read the situation and shift register. Spanish speakers should note that this gap is wider than in Spanish, where the written and spoken languages sit much closer together.
Registro: norma culta escrita × português brasileiro falado — how do you form it?
fala (Me dá / a gente foi / tem / vi ele / dei pra ele / vou fazer) × escrita (Dê-me / nós fomos / há / vi-o / dei-lhe / farei)
Registro: norma culta escrita × português brasileiro falado — any usage notes?
Rule of thumb: speak the 'fala' forms, write the 'escrita' forms. Mixing them jars — 'Dê-me um minutinho aí' sounds stiff, while 'Me dá mais um instante, por favor' in a formal email reads as too casual. Keep the whole sentence in one register.