Portuguese · Food & Drink

"Snack" in Portuguese: lanche

o lanche

LAN-sheemasculine · o lanchenoun/ˈlɐn.ʃi/

A snack in Portuguese is o lanche. It can mean a light meal too—lançar um lanche for grabbing a sandwich.

Afternoon break

Vou pegar um lanche rápido na padaria.

I'm going to grab a quick snack at the bakery.

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How to pronounce lanche

Say it

LAN-shee

/ˈlɐn.ʃi/

LAN-shee

"Snack" in Portuguese: quick reference

Portuguese	English	When to use
o lanche	the snack / light meal Default noun.	Default noun.
um lanche	a snack Ordering or packing.	Ordering or packing.
hora do lanche	snack time School and office breaks.	School and office breaks.
lanche da tarde	afternoon snack Common daily slot.	Common daily slot.

How to use lanche in real life

1Afternoon break
Vou pegar um lanche rápido na padaria.
I'm going to grab a quick snack at the bakery.
Padaria run.
2Kids' school bag
Coloquei fruta no lanche dela.
I put fruit in her snack.
Packed snack.
3Road trip
O lanche no carro foi só biscoito e água.
The snack in the car was just cookies and water.
Travel.

Mistakes English speakers make with lanche

Incorrect: Quero um snack.

Correct: Quero um lanche.

Everyday Portuguese uses lanche.

Incorrect: A lanche está pronto.

Correct: O lanche está pronto.

Lanche is masculine.

Good to know

Lanche covers both a snack and a casual sandwich meal. Hora do lanche is sacred in Brazilian schools. At night, people may still say lanche for a light bite instead of jantar.