Here is some vocabulary for clothing in Portuguese. There can be some confusion with certain names as they can apply to many articles of clothing. Roupas / roupa – clothes, can be used in the plural or the singular. Bed linen is called ‘roupa de cama’ in Portugal 🙂
The articles a & o can be found before each Portuguese noun, in order not to be repetitive (and to save ink if you print it out) I have not put the article ‘the’ in english before each noun. Don’t forget that the Portuguese article is very important when learning Portuguese as it tells us the gender of each noun
Tops!
a camisa – shirt / this can be a man’s shirt or a woman’s
a blusa – blouse / this word covers a lot of English words like ‘top’ for example
a camiseta – sleeveless top /t-shirt , not used so much these days.
o t-shirt – needs no translation and is often used instead of camiseta
o t-shirt cava – sleeveless top
o casaco – jacket / often from a suit, but it can also be other types of jackets
o blusão – jacket / more casual / a thick jacket
a camisola – It can mean sweatshirt as it stands or a long sleeved top.
a camisola de lã – a woolen jumper or sweater
Bottoms
a saia – skirt
as calças – trousers / often in the plural form like English the article is often omitted like English too.
os calções – shorts
Other
o fato – suit
a gravata – tie
o colete – waistcoat
o cinto – belt
o vestido – dress
Nightwear and Underwear
a camisola de dormir – nightdress
o pijama – pyjamas / in the singular unless there is more than one of them
a camisola interior – can be anything from grandma’s old thermal vest to something more sexy made in Italy.
a cueca – non gender specific knickers, although for men boxers is often used too.
a calcinha – panties (not common like knickers)
o sutiã – bra
as meias – socks / meias altas – long socks / meias curtas – short socks
a meia calça – thick tights
os collants – nylon tights
Accessories
o chapéu – hat
o boné – cap
o gorro – beanie
o lenço – neckerchief / light scarf (it also means handkerchief)
o cachecol – scarf (pronounced like catch cold 🙂 )
as luvas – gloves
Shoes
– sapatos or calçado – in Portuguese
os chinelos – flip flops
os sapatos – shoes (o sapato – the shoe)
o sapato de salto alto – high heels
a sandália – sandals
a bota – boots
a sapatilha – also used for trainers
os tênis – sneakers
as pantufas – slippers
Beach wear
o biquíni – bikini
o fato banho – bathing suit
os calções (de banho) – swimming shorts
Some useful words & phrases
mangas curtas – short sleeves
mangas compridas – long sleeves
gola alta – polar neck
sem mangas – without sleeves
blusa de manga curta – short sleeved top
largo/a – large, baggy, loose
apertado/a – tight
comprido/a – long
curto/a – short
Está blusa está apertada – this blouse is too tight (on me)
Estes sapatos estão apertados – these shoes are too tight (on me)
Estas calças estão largas – these trousers are loose (on me)
Esta camisa está muito curta – this shirt is very short (on me)
Esta camisa é muito curta – this shirt is very short
Esta saia é muito curta – this skirt is very short