Nana_Brazil

>>Diálogo
Dialogue

I like to start with a good conversation. There’s not too much to this one, but that’s for your benefit.

Oh, and please remember that you’re not in a sterile classroom. When you see a Diálogo, or any other text in Portuguese, I ask that you do one thing for me: Abra a boca! Open your mouth! Speak the language out loud; it’s a beautiful language that deserves this from you!

Setting:
Ana e Roberto Anna and Robert, two young college students, have seen each other around campus, but are meeting for the first time.

Ana Oi! Como você vai?
Roberto Tudo bem, obrigado. E você?
Ana Bem, obrigada. Como você se chama?
Roberto Eu me chamo Roberto. E você?
Ana Eu me chamo Ana.
Roberto De onde você é?
Ana São Paulo, e você?
Roberto Rio de Janeiro.
Ana Muito bom.
Roberto Muito prazer!
Ana Muito prazer e obrigada.
Roberto De nada. Adeus!
Ana Adeus!

I know, it probably looks foreign and uninviting. What if I promised you that it's actually an easy and repetitious conversation and that, very soon, this will be just as easy for you as for these two?

Let's examine it line by line:

Oi! Hello!/Hi! is an appropriate informal greeting at any time of the day.
Como você vai? means How are you?, but it literally translates "How you go?". Although mangled in English, it sounds close to How's it going?
Tudo bem! All's well! is a good response to the question Como você vai? The first word means all and the second well.
Obrigado and obrigada (in Ana's response) both mean thank you or thanks, so how do we know when to use one or the other? If you're a male, you must say obrigado (just like Roberto), and a female will always say obrigada (just like Ana). Unless you momentarily forget your gender, you'll be just fine.
E você? And you? is a short and efficient tag question, just like its English counterpart.
Bem! If Tudo bem! means "All well", then what does bem mean?
Como você se chama? asks for someone's name: What's your name?
Eu me chamo... My name is...
De onde você é? means Where are you from?
Bom or Muito bom O.K./Alright is a useful expression. You can use it to mark agreement, satisfaction, joy, or even indifference. Compare it to your stock of handy filler words: OK..., fine..., well..., etc.
Muito prazer! translates Much pleasure!, and it expresses the pleasure of meeting someone. Basically, you'll use it whenever you have the above conversation ("how are you?"... "what's your name?"..., "where are you from?").
De nada! You're welcome! works whenever someone has just said obrigado or obrigada.
Adeus! a nice, decent way to say Goodbye!.