Portuguese · Nature, Animals & Weather

"Turtle" in Portuguese: tartaruga

a tartaruga

Say it: tar-tah-ROO-gahfeminine · a tartaruganoun/taʁ.ta.ˈɾu.ɡa/

Turtle in Portuguese is a tartaruga. It covers sea turtles and land tortoises in everyday talk.

Beach night

Vimos uma tartaruga subindo a areia.
We saw a turtle climbing the sand.
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How to pronounce tartaruga

Say it

tar-tah-ROO-gah

/taʁ.ta.ˈɾu.ɡa/

tar-tah-ROO-gah

"Turtle" in Portuguese: quick reference

PortugueseEnglish
a tartarugathe turtle / tortoise

Default noun.

tartaruga-marinhasea turtle

Species group.

ninho de tartarugaturtle nest

Beach conservation.

andar que nem tartarugato walk as slow as a turtle

Idiom.

How to use tartaruga in real life

  1. 1Beach night

    Vimos uma tartaruga subindo a areia.

    We saw a turtle climbing the sand.

    Wildlife.

  2. 2Pet store talk

    A tartaruga do aquário comeu toda a alface.

    The turtle in the tank ate all the lettuce.

    Pet.

  3. 3Joke

    Hoje eu estou lento que nem tartaruga.

    Today I’m as slow as a turtle.

    Idiom.

Mistakes English speakers make with tartaruga

Incorrect: O tartaruga é lenta.

Correct: A tartaruga é lenta.

Tartaruga is feminine.

Incorrect: Vi uma turtle na praia.

Correct: Vi uma tartaruga na praia.

Use tartaruga.

Good to know

Brazilian beaches protect tartaruga-marinha nests in season. Everyday speech rarely separates turtle vs tortoise the way English sometimes does—tartaruga covers both unless you get technical.

Try it in a ChatPal conversation

Watching a nature video

  1. ChatPal

    Essa tartaruga é enorme!

    That turtle is huge!

  2. You

    É uma tartaruga-marinha, né?

    It’s a sea turtle, right?

  3. ChatPal

    Acho que sim. Olha o casco da tartaruga.

    I think so. Look at the turtle’s shell.

  4. You

    Incrível. Quero ver uma de verdade.

    Amazing. I want to see a real one.

This is a sample. In ChatPal you have this conversation out loud and get feedback on what you say.

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"Turtle" in other languages

FAQ

Common questions about "Turtle" in Portuguese

Gender?

Feminine: a tartaruga.

Sea turtle?

Tartaruga-marinha.

Plural?

As tartarugas.

Slow as a turtle?

Lento que nem tartaruga.

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