Parabéns!

Congratulations!

Breakdown of Parabéns!

• parabéns: congratulations

Questions & Answers about Parabéns!

How do you pronounce Parabéns in Brazilian Portuguese?

A common Brazilian pronunciation is roughly pah-rah-BENGS.

A few helpful notes:

• The final -éns is nasal because of em/ens in Portuguese. It is not a plain English -ens sound.
• The stress falls on the last syllable: pa-ra-BÉNS.
• The r in para is usually a light tapped sound in the middle of the word.

What does the accent mark in Parabéns do?

The accent in é shows that:

• the stressed syllable is béns
• the vowel is an open é sound

So the word is stressed as pa-ra-BÉNS, not PA-ra-bens or pa-RA-bens.

Why does Parabéns look plural?

Because it is plural in form. Parabéns is historically related to the idea of offering congratulations, which is also plural in English.

That said, learners should mostly treat Parabéns! as a fixed expression meaning:

• Congratulations!
• Happy birthday! in the right context

You do not normally change it to a singular form.