Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Eu tenho medo de falar em público.

Ter medo describes a fear as a characteristic or a usual reaction (more neutral and common).
Estar com medo focuses more on a temporary emotional state right now.

Eu tenho medo de falar em público.
I’m (generally) afraid of public speaking.
Hoje estou com medo de falar em público.
Today I’m scared to speak in public (this particular time).

Why is there a de before falar in tenho medo de falar?

The expression in Portuguese is ter medo de + something.

Before a noun:
- Tenho medo de cães. – I’m afraid of dogs.
Before a verb (infinitive):
- Tenho medo de falar. – I’m afraid of speaking.

That de is obligatory here.
You cannot say tenho medo falar or tenho medo a falar – both are wrong.

Why is it de falar (infinitive) and not something like que falo or que fale?

Portuguese often uses de + infinitive after ter medo:

Tenho medo de falar em público.
Literally: I have fear of speaking in public.

You can use a clause with que and the subjunctive, but the meaning shifts:

Tenho medo de falar em público.
General fear of the action of speaking in public.
Tenho medo que fale em público.
I’m afraid that (he/she/I) will speak in public.
(This is about a person doing the action, not about the activity itself.)

For your sentence, because you’re talking about the activity in general, de falar (infinitive) is the natural and most common choice.

Can I drop the pronoun Eu and just say Tenho medo de falar em público?

Yes, and that’s actually more natural in Portuguese.

Eu tenho medo de falar em público. – correct
Tenho medo de falar em público. – equally correct, more typical

Portuguese is a pro‑drop language: subject pronouns (eu, tu, ele…) are often omitted when the verb ending already shows who the subject is.
Here, tenho clearly indicates eu, so Eu is not required.

What is the difference between ter medo de falar em público and ter vergonha de falar em público?

ter medo de = to be afraid of
ter vergonha de = to be embarrassed / shy / ashamed about

So:

Tenho medo de falar em público.
I’m afraid of public speaking (fear, anxiety).
Tenho vergonha de falar em público.
I’m too shy / I feel embarrassed to speak in public.

You can even combine them:

Tenho medo e vergonha de falar em público.
I’m scared and embarrassed to speak in public.

Why is it em público and not no público or para o público?

In Portuguese, the fixed expression falar em público means to speak in public / to do public speaking.

em público = in front of (any) people / publicly, in a public setting
It’s a set phrase: falar em público, discutir em público, etc.

no público would literally mean in the audience (inside the group of people listening), which is not what you want here.

para o público means to the audience / to the public and focuses on the direction of the speech, not on the situation of “public speaking” as a skill or activity.

So for the general idea of “public speaking”, always use falar em público.

Could I say falar ao público instead of falar em público?

You can, but the meaning is slightly different:

falar em público – to speak in public, to do public speaking (the activity / context)
falar ao público – to speak to the public / to the audience (focus on the addressee)

Your sentence is about the situation of public speaking as a general skill, so falar em público is the natural expression.

Does falar em público always mean formal public speaking, like giving a speech?

Not necessarily, but it usually suggests some kind of audience and a more exposed situation.

Falar em público can cover:

Giving a speech or presentation
Speaking at a meeting in front of colleagues
Saying something in front of a group of people you don’t know well

It usually doesn’t refer to casual chatting in a bar or at a family dinner. The focus is on feeling exposed in front of others.

Why does público have an accent? What would change without it?

The accent in público marks the stressed syllable:

pú-bli-co – stress on the first syllable

Without the accent (publico), it would be read differently and usually be a verb form:

pú-bli-co (público) – noun/adjective: public
pu-bli-co (publico) – 1st person singular of publicar (I publish)

So:

falar em público – to speak in public
eu publico – I publish

The accent prevents confusion and shows where the stress goes.

How do you pronounce Eu tenho medo de falar em público in European Portuguese?

Approximate pronunciation (European Portuguese):

Eu – like English “eh-oo” or “ehw”
tenho – “TEH-nyu” with a soft ny (like Spanish ñ in niño)
medo – “MEH-doo” (the d is clear)
de – very short, like “dɨ” (almost like a quick duh but weaker)
falar – “fah-LAR” (stress on the last syllable; final r often soft or almost silent in many speakers)
em – nasal sound, roughly “ẽyng”, but very short
público – “POO-bli-coo”, stress on PÚ: PÚ‑bli‑co

Altogether, something like:

Eu tenho medo de falar em público.
≈ “Ew TEH-nyu MEH-doo dɨ fah-LAR ẽyng POO-bli-coo.”

(That’s only an approximation in English spelling, but it gives you the general idea.)

Which English translation is closer: “afraid to speak in public” or “afraid of speaking in public”?

Both work as natural translations:

Tenho medo de falar em público.
→ I’m afraid to speak in public.
→ I’m afraid of speaking in public.

The Portuguese structure ter medo de + infinitive can correspond to either English pattern. There’s no change in meaning here; it’s just stylistic in English.

How would I say “We are afraid of speaking in public” using the same structure?

You keep the same pattern ter medo de + infinitive, but conjugate ter for nós:

Nós temos medo de falar em público.
or, more naturally:
Temos medo de falar em público.

Other persons for reference:

Eu tenho medo de falar em público. – I am afraid
Tu tens medo de falar em público. – You (singular, informal) are afraid
Ele / Ela tem medo de falar em público. – He / She is afraid
Eles / Elas têm medo de falar em público. – They are afraid

Is the word medo masculine or feminine, and does that affect the sentence?

Medo is a masculine noun: o medo (the fear).

In this particular sentence, you don’t see any adjective agreeing with it, so the gender doesn’t change anything visibly.

But if you add an adjective, it must agree in gender and number with medo:

Tenho um medo terrível de falar em público.
terrível doesn’t change (same form for masculine/feminine)
Tenho um medo enorme de falar em público.
enorme also doesn’t change

With an adjective that does change, you’d see it:

Tenho um medo profundo de falar em público.
(masculine: profundo, not profunda)

Could I move em público earlier, like Tenho medo de em público falar?

Grammatically, Tenho medo de em público falar is possible, but it sounds very unnatural and poetic in modern Portuguese.

Normal word order is:

Tenho medo de falar em público.

You can play with the order if you really want to emphasize in public, but you’d typically do that with speech stress, or with something like:

Em público é que tenho medo de falar.
(Here em público is fronted for emphasis, but the structure changes.)

For everyday speech, keep em público at the end: falar em público.

What’s the difference between ter medo and ficar com medo in this context?

ter medo – to have fear; describes a fear you already have (more stable or general).
ficar com medo – to become afraid; describes a change (you weren’t afraid before, but now you are).

Compare:

Tenho medo de falar em público.
I’m (in general) afraid of speaking in public.
Fico com medo quando tenho de falar em público.
I become afraid when I have to speak in public.

Your original sentence describes a general, ongoing fear, so tenho medo is the right choice.