Adverbs of quantity answer quanto? — how much or to what degree? They form one of the most crowded corners of Portuguese vocabulary, with a dozen near-synonyms each carrying a slightly different intensity or register. This page maps the whole inventory — the neutral workhorses (muito, pouco, mais, menos), the intensifiers that learners confuse (bastante, demasiado), the colloquial PT-PT favorites (imenso, bem, um bocado), and the approximators (quase, cerca de, mais ou menos).
The single most important skill is keeping adverbial uses (modifying verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs — invariable) apart from adjectival uses (modifying nouns — agreeing). Most errors on this page live on that one fault line.
Muito — the default intensifier
Muito means very before an adjective or adverb, a lot before a verb, and much / many before a noun. As an adverb it is invariable; as a quantifier before a noun it agrees (muito / muita / muitos / muitas).
Estou muito cansada depois do trabalho.
I'm very tired after work. (adverb, invariable even though cansada is feminine)
Há muitos turistas no centro de Lisboa.
There are a lot of tourists in central Lisbon. (adjective, agrees with plural noun)
For a full treatment of muito versus bastante, see the dedicated page — this one focuses on the full field of quantity adverbs.
Pouco — a little, not very
Pouco is the opposite pole of muito. As an adverb it means a little or not very; as an adjective it means not much or few. Same behavior: invariable as adverb, agreeing as quantifier.
Este café é pouco doce, podes passar-me o açúcar?
This coffee isn't very sweet — can you pass me the sugar?
Durmo pouco durante a semana.
I sleep little during the week.
Um pouco — a bit
Um pouco softens pouco into a bit, a little. It is positive rather than negative in flavor.
Estou um pouco cansada, mas já me recomponho.
I'm a bit tired, but I'll pull through.
Espera um pouco, já vou.
Wait a bit, I'm on my way.
Bastante — quite, rather (PT-PT)
In European Portuguese, bastante before an adjective or adverb tilts toward quite, rather, pretty — a downshift from muito, not an equivalent. This is a major PT-PT/BR split: Brazilian speakers often use bastante to mean very outright.
O filme foi bastante interessante, gostei.
The film was quite interesting, I enjoyed it. (milder than muito interessante)
Ela fala inglês bastante bem.
She speaks English pretty well.
Before a noun, bastante varies in number only: bastante / bastantes.
Há bastante gente à espera lá fora.
There are quite a lot of people waiting outside.
Tenho bastantes dúvidas sobre isto.
I have quite a few doubts about this.
Bem as an intensifier — PT-PT colloquial
Alongside its core meaning well, bem functions in colloquial PT-PT as an intensifier roughly equivalent to quite, really, nice and. This usage is familiar and warm — you hear it in everyday conversation constantly but rarely in writing.
Ele é bem simpático, vais gostar.
He's really nice, you'll like him.
Este café está bem quente, cuidado.
This coffee is nice and hot, be careful.
A sopa saiu bem boa desta vez.
The soup turned out really good this time.
Tão — so (exclamative / comparative)
Tão means so before an adjective or adverb. It is the adverb you use in exclamations (que dia tão bonito!) and in comparisons of equality (tão ... como).
Este bolo está tão bom!
This cake is so good!
Ela fala tão depressa que eu não percebo nada.
She speaks so fast that I don't understand anything.
Não é tão difícil como parece.
It's not as hard as it seems.
Tanto is the parallel form used before verbs or as a quantifier before nouns. Before a verb it stays invariable; before a noun it agrees: tanto / tanta / tantos / tantas.
Trabalhas tanto, precisas de descansar.
You work so much — you need to rest.
Nunca comi tantas sardinhas na vida.
I've never eaten so many sardines in my life.
Tenho tanta pena que não possas vir.
I'm so sorry you can't come.
Demasiado — too, too much
Demasiado signals excess, not just high intensity. It is often negatively charged — the thing is too much for comfort or purpose.
As an adverb (before adjectives or adverbs), it is invariable. As a quantifier before a noun, it agrees: demasiado / demasiada / demasiados / demasiadas.
O café está demasiado quente, ainda me queimo.
The coffee is too hot — I'll burn myself.
Falas demasiado depressa para eu perceber.
You speak too fast for me to understand.
Há demasiados carros nesta cidade.
There are too many cars in this city.
Comi demasiada comida ao jantar.
I ate too much food at dinner.
Mais, menos — the comparatives
Mais (more) and menos (less, fewer) are invariable. They stack with other adverbs and adjectives and are the building blocks of comparisons.
Preciso de trabalhar mais e dormir menos.
I need to work more and sleep less.
Este é mais caro do que o outro.
This one is more expensive than the other.
Tenho menos paciência do que antes.
I have less patience than before.
The full comparative structures (mais ... do que, tão ... como, tanto ... quanto) are covered in the Comparative and Superlative Adverbs page.
Imenso, um bocado, um bocadinho — PT-PT colloquial favorites
These three adverbs are where PT-PT speech diverges most sharply from BR and from textbook Portuguese.
Imenso — loads, hugely
Literally immense, used as an everyday colloquial intensifier meaning loads, a huge amount. Invariable as an adverb; agrees as a quantifier before a noun.
Gosto imenso do teu cão.
I really love your dog.
Ajudaste-me imenso, obrigada.
You helped me loads, thank you.
Há imensa gente na praia hoje.
There are tons of people at the beach today.
Um bocado / um bocadinho — a bit / a little bit
Um bocado is the PT-PT everyday choice where BR tends to say um pouco or um pouquinho. Um bocadinho is the affectionate diminutive — softer, smaller, often warmer.
Está um bocado frio hoje, não achas?
It's a bit cold today, don't you think?
Espera um bocadinho, já acabo.
Wait a little bit, I'm almost done.
O restaurante é bom, mas um bocado caro.
The restaurant is good, but a bit pricey.
Quase — almost
Quase is invariable and slots in front of whatever it modifies — verb, adjective, noun phrase, or clause.
Já quase acabei o livro.
I've almost finished the book.
Quase caí naquele buraco.
I almost fell into that hole.
São quase dez horas.
It's almost ten o'clock.
Só, apenas — only, just
Both mean only. Só is more frequent and more neutral in speech; apenas is slightly more formal and very common in writing. They can often be substituted for one another.
Só tenho cinco minutos, fala depressa.
I only have five minutes — talk fast.
Apenas três pessoas apareceram à reunião.
Only three people showed up to the meeting. (slightly more formal)
Peço-te só isto: não contes a ninguém.
I'm only asking you this: don't tell anyone.
Ele não diz isso apenas para te agradar.
He doesn't say that just to please you.
Cerca de, aproximadamente — about, approximately
Used with quantities, distances, times.
Estavam cerca de duzentas pessoas na manifestação.
There were about two hundred people at the protest.
Fica aproximadamente a dez minutos a pé.
It's roughly ten minutes on foot.
Mais ou menos — more or less
Ubiquitous in PT-PT speech as a hedging device. Answers how much? with roughly, and also replies to how are you? with so-so.
— Quanto custou? — Mais ou menos cinquenta euros.
— How much did it cost? — Around fifty euros.
— Estás bem? — Mais ou menos, tenho estado cansado.
— Are you okay? — So-so, I've been tired.
Já acabámos mais ou menos metade.
We've finished more or less half.
Bem como, tanto como — as well as, as much as
Connective uses of quantity words. Bem como means as well as (in addition to); tanto como means as much as.
Vieram os pais bem como os avós.
The parents came as well as the grandparents.
Ela trabalha tanto como o irmão.
She works as much as her brother.
Summary table
| Adverb | English | Register | Before a noun? |
|---|---|---|---|
| muito | very / a lot / much | neutral | agrees (muito/-a/-os/-as) |
| pouco | little / not very | neutral | agrees |
| bastante | quite / rather | PT-PT milder than muito | number only (bastante/-s) |
| bem (+ adj.) | really, quite | PT-PT colloquial | no |
| tão / tanto | so / so much | neutral | tanto agrees, tão only before adj./adv. |
| demasiado | too / too much | neutral | agrees |
| mais / menos | more / less | neutral | invariable |
| imenso | loads | PT-PT informal | agrees |
| um bocado | a bit | PT-PT informal | no (takes de: um bocado de tempo) |
| quase | almost | neutral | invariable |
| só / apenas | only / just | só colloquial, apenas slightly formal | invariable |
| cerca de / aproximadamente | about | neutral / slightly formal | invariable |
| mais ou menos | more or less | neutral | invariable |
Position rules
As a rule of thumb:
- Before adjectives and adverbs → the quantity adverb sits immediately before. Muito cansada, bastante depressa, demasiado quente.
- With verbs → the quantity adverb typically follows the verb. Come muito, trabalha pouco, gosto imenso.
- Before numerals and nouns → the quantity adverb sits before. Quase cinco, cerca de vinte, só três.
Ele está muito contente com a notícia.
He's very happy with the news. (pre-adjective)
Ela come pouco ao pequeno-almoço.
She eats little at breakfast. (post-verb)
Cerca de vinte pessoas vieram à apresentação.
About twenty people came to the presentation. (pre-numeral)
Comparison with English
English draws a sharp line between very (for adjectives/adverbs) and very much (for verbs): very tired, but I like it very much. Portuguese does not make that split — muito covers both.
Estou muito cansada.
I'm very tired.
Gosto muito de ti.
I like you very much.
English also distinguishes too (excess, demasiado) from very (intensity, muito) more routinely than learners expect. Saying "it's very hot" when you mean "it's too hot" is fine in English but imprecise — in Portuguese, choose muito quente for hot, demasiado quente for uncomfortably hot.
Common mistakes
❌ Estou muita cansada.
Incorrect — before an adjective, *muito* is an adverb and does not agree with the feminine adjective.
✅ Estou muito cansada.
I'm very tired.
✅ Há muitas pessoas aqui.
There are a lot of people here.
❌ Ele fala bem rápido.
Intended as 'he speaks very fast', but this reads as 'he speaks well and quickly'. Use *muito* or *bem depressa* (colloquial).
✅ Ele fala muito depressa.
He speaks very fast.
❌ Este café é demasiado bom.
Awkward — *demasiado* carries the sense of excess. *This coffee is too good* in English can be hyperbolic, but in Portuguese the excess reading dominates; use *muito bom* unless you really mean too good to be true.
✅ Este café é muito bom.
This coffee is very good.
❌ Trouxe bastante maçãs.
Incorrect — *bastante* before a plural noun agrees in number: *bastantes*.
✅ Trouxe bastantes maçãs.
I brought quite a few apples.
❌ Eu gosto muito muito de ti.
Doubled *muito* sounds childish; use *imenso* or *muitíssimo*.
✅ Eu gosto imenso de ti.
I really like you.
❌ Estou um pouquinho cansada.
Possible but reads as BR — PT-PT prefers *um bocadinho*.
✅ Estou um bocadinho cansada.
I'm a little bit tired. (idiomatic PT-PT)
❌ Cerca vinte pessoas.
Incorrect — *cerca* requires *de*: *cerca de vinte*.
✅ Cerca de vinte pessoas vieram.
About twenty people came.
Key takeaways
- Distinguish adverbial uses (invariable, modifying verbs / adjectives / adverbs) from adjectival uses (agreeing with nouns). This single distinction accounts for most errors with muito, pouco, bastante, demasiado, imenso, tanto.
- Muito is the default; bastante in PT-PT is a downshift to quite; demasiado signals excess.
- Imenso, um bocado / um bocadinho, and colloquial bem are distinctively PT-PT registers worth adding to your speech.
- Position: pre-adjective, post-verb, pre-numeral.
- English very and very much both map to muito in Portuguese — no split.
Related Topics
- Adverbs OverviewA2 — Introduction to Portuguese adverbs — what they are, the main semantic classes, how they are formed, and how European Portuguese adverbs differ from their English equivalents.
- Adverbs of MannerA2 — How things are done in Portuguese — bem, mal, assim, devagar, depressa, the -mente family, and the prepositional phrases that do most of the heavy lifting in everyday PT-PT speech.
- Comparative and Superlative AdverbsB1 — Comparing actions in Portuguese — mais/menos/tão ... do que/como, the irregular pairs melhor/pior, correlative constructions with quanto mais, and the PT-PT natural o mais depressa possível.
- Muito vs BastanteA2 — Two Portuguese intensifiers with different flavours — the neutral muito and the 'quite/rather' bastante — plus the distinctively PT-PT imenso and a handful of other intensifiers learners need.
- Quantifier Determiners: muito, pouco, bastante, tanto, váriosA2 — Determiners of quantity in European Portuguese — muito, pouco, bastante, tanto, vários, diversos, numerosos, demais — their agreement, position, and the adverb-vs-determiner distinction that trips up English speakers.
- Adverb Placement RulesA2 — Where Portuguese adverbs actually go, organised by type — manner, frequency, time, place, degree, and sentence adverbs — with the practical defaults, the allowed alternatives, and the mistakes English speakers make most often.