Is the word generalizar the same in Brazilian and European Portuguese?
Yes
The word "generalizar" is identical in both Brazilian and European Portuguese in terms of meaning, spelling, and grammatical function. The only difference lies in pronunciation. In Brazilian Portuguese, the vowels are typically more "open" and the rhythm is more syllable-timed, making each vowel clearly audible. In European Portuguese, the pronunciation is more "closed," and unstressed vowels are often reduced or almost silenced (a process called vowel reduction), which can make the word sound much shorter or more muffled to a Brazilian ear.
Brazilian Portuguese Examples
- Não dá para generalizar assim. (You can't generalize like that.)
- Ele gosta de generalizar muito as coisas. (He likes to generalize things a lot.)
- A gente não pode generalizar por causa de um erro. (We can't generalize because of one mistake.)
- É muito ruim generalizar sobre as pessoas. (It is very bad to generalize about people.)
- O professor explicou como generalizar a fórmula. (The teacher explained how to generalize the formula.)
European Portuguese Examples
- Não se deve generalizar dessa forma. (One should not generalize in this way.)
- Ele tende a generalizar tudo o que vê. (He tends to generalize everything he sees.)
- Não se pode generalizar por todos os brasileiros. (One cannot generalize on behalf of all Brazilians.)
- É perigoso generalizar acerca deste tema. (It is dangerous to generalize about this theme.)
- Pretende-se generalizar os resultados obtidos. (The intention is to generalize the results obtained.)
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· BR vs PT Word Differences