Portuguese · Emotions & Descriptions
"Hot" in Portuguese: quente
quente
Hot in Portuguese is quente. Food, drinks, and weather all use quente: o café está quente, hoje está quente. For spicy heat, Brazilians usually say apimentado, not quente.
Weather chat
Hoje está muito quente aqui em São Paulo.Speak with an AI partner · 7 days free
How to pronounce quente
Say it
KEN-chee
/ˈkẽ.tʃi/
KEN-chee. The final e sounds like ee.
"Hot" in Portuguese: quick reference
| Portuguese | English | When to use |
|---|---|---|
| quente | hot (temperature) Food, drinks, water, weather. | Food, drinks, water, weather. |
| está quente | it's hot Weather or something you touch. | Weather or something you touch. |
| água quente | hot water Showers and kitchens. | Showers and kitchens. |
| muito quente | very hot Stronger weather or food complaint. | Stronger weather or food complaint. |
| apimentado | spicy Not quente; spice heat is different. | Not quente; spice heat is different. |
How to use quente in real life
- 1Weather chat
Hoje está muito quente aqui em São Paulo.
It's very hot here in São Paulo today.
Está quente is the default weather line.
- 2Coffee warning
Cuidado, o café está bem quente.
Careful, the coffee is really hot.
Bem quente softens or emphasizes naturally.
- 3Shower question
A água do banheiro está quente?
Is the bathroom water hot?
Useful in hotels and rentals.
Mistakes English speakers make with quente
Incorrect: O chili está quente (meaning spicy).
Correct: O chili está apimentado.
Quente is temperature. Spicy is apimentado or picante.
Incorrect: Está caldo hoje.
Correct: Está quente hoje.
Caldo is Spanish/Italian-ish. Portuguese weather heat is quente.
Good to know
In Brazil, está quente is constant summer small talk, especially in coastal cities. People also say calor or que calor! for the weather. Keep quente for temperature and switch to apimentado when the food burns your mouth.
Try it in a ChatPal conversation
Arriving at a café on a summer day
ChatPal
Nossa, está quente lá fora!
Wow, it's hot outside!
You
Muito quente. Quero água gelada.
Very hot. I want cold water.
ChatPal
O chá também está quente demais?
Is the tea too hot too?
You
Um pouco quente. Vou esperar.
A bit hot. I'll wait.
This is a sample. In ChatPal you have this conversation out loud and get feedback on what you say.
Practice this conversation in ChatPal"Hot" in other languages
FAQ
Common questions about "Hot" in Portuguese
How do I say it's hot outside?
Está quente or Que calor!
Does quente mean spicy?
No. Use apimentado for spicy food.
Hot water?
Água quente.
Does quente change for gender?
Quente stays the same for masculine and feminine.
Learn a word, then use it out loud
- Step 1: See it in context
- Step 2: Say it out loud
- Step 3: Get feedback
- Step 4: Use it in real scenarios
