PORTUGAL · MIDFIELDER
How to pronounce
Bernardo Silva
Say it
ber·NAR·dohSIHL·vah
American /bərˈnɑrdoʊ ˈsɪlvɑ/
Sound by sound
5 little beats. BIG = the stressed part.
- ber the ‘er’ in her
- NAR the ‘ar’ in car — say this beat loudest
- doh the ‘oh’ in go
- SIHL the ‘ih’ in sit — say this beat loudest
- vah the ‘ah’ in father
Get it right
- ber·NAR·doh SIHL·vah — stress on NAR and SIHL
- Nation
- Portugal
- Position
- Midfielder
Why Portuguese names trip up English speakers
- -nh- is a ‘ny’ sound — Vitinha → vee-TEE-nyah, Marquinhos → mar-KEE-nyohs.
- Brazilian R at the start of a word is an H — Rodrygo → hoh-DREE-goh, Raphinha → hah-FEE-nyuh.
- Nasal endings (-ão, -ães) have no clean English match; Americans land on a plain ‘own’/‘ines’ — Leão → lee-OW.
- -s between vowels is a ‘z’, and j / -di- lean toward ‘zh’ — Júnior → ZHOO-nyor.
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FAQ
How do you pronounce Bernardo Silva?
Bernardo Silva is pronounced ber·NAR·doh SIHL·vah in American English — 5 beats, stressing NAR and SIHL.
What position does Bernardo Silva play?
Bernardo Silva is a midfielder for Portugal (the Portuguese national team).