Portuguese · Cantina
The canteen worker: your child is not eating anything: what to say in Portuguese
A canteen worker says your child is barely eating anything.
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How it's done. Portuguese school food can be unfamiliar (soup every day, lots of fish) - children need time to get used to it.Prepared by the Movko team, November 2026. This is language help, not legal or medical advice: check the rules with the office itself.
Cheat sheet for your visit
The first phrase is open: tap ▶ to listen, or “Show” to show it to the other person. The rest of the dialogue is in the course in the app.
1
THEY SPEAK FIRST
THEY SAY
O Ivan quase não come ao almoço.Oo Ee-VAHN kwahz now kom ow uhl-MOH-soo.
Ivan hardly eats at lunch.
They might also say:
O Ivan come muito pouco ao almoço.
Oo Ee-VAHN kom MWEE-too POH-koo ow uhl-MOH-soo.
Ivan eats very little at lunch.
YOU REPLY
Ele ainda não está habituado à comida.
El uh-EEN-duh now shtah uh-bee-too-AH-doo uh koo-MEE-duh.
He isn't used to the food yet.
THEY SAY
Vamos insistir um bocadinho.VAH-mooz een-seesh-TEER oon boo-kuh-DEE-nyoo.
We'll keep encouraging him a little.
2
YOU REPLY
Em casa come bem.
Ayn KAH-zuh kom bayn.
At home he eats well.
THEY SAY
Pode trazer um lanche reforçado.Pod truh-ZEHR oon lahnsh rih-foor-SAH-doo.
You can give a more substantial snack.
3
YOU FINISH
Muito obrigado!
MWEE-too oh-bree-GAH-doo!
Thank you very much!
Or say:Obrigado, até logo!
oh-bree-GAH-doo, uh-TEH LOH-goo!
The course is in the app
This dialogue is part of the course “Portuguese for life in Portugal”: 416 situations with audio, a pronunciation guide and spaced review.
On the website the first dialogue, the 112 category, the rescue phrases and the “Basics” are fully open.
Words worth knowing
quase
kwahz
adverb
almost
não
now
adverb
no
come
kom
verb
eats
almoço
uhl-MOH-soo
noun
lunch
ainda
uh-EEN-duh
adverb
still, yet
está
shtah
verb
is, is located (now)
20 more words, with explanations, base forms and tap-a-word help, are in the app.
If you did not understand
Pode falar mais devagar, por favor?
Pod fuh-LAHR mighzh dvuh-GAHR, poor fuh-VOR?
Can you speak more slowly, please?
Desculpe, não percebi.
Dish-KOOLP, now pir-sih-BEE.
Sorry, I didn't understand.
Similar situations
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