Obrigado

Obrigado is the Portuguese word used to express gratitude. Grammatically, it is the masculine past participle of the verb obrigar, meaning to oblige. The form conveys that the speaker feels obliged or indebted to the person being thanked. The verb and its participle derive from Latin obligare, meaning to bind or oblige. In contemporary usage, obrigado functions as a straightforward way to say “thank you,” often in response to a favor, service, or courtesy.

Gender forms and variations: The feminine form obrigada exists for female speakers. Phrases include muito obrigado or muito obrigada for stronger gratitude. Other common expressions of thanks include agradeço (I thank you) and, informally, valeu. The choice between obrigado and obrigada follows the speaker’s gender in standard Portuguese.

Regional use and context: Obrigado is widely used across Portuguese-speaking countries, including Portugal, Brazil, Angola, and Mozambique, in formal and informal contexts. It serves as a polite, conventional expression of thanks in everyday speech, customer service, written communication, and social interactions. While it literally implies an indebtedness, it functions idiomatically as the equivalent of “thank you” in many social situations, with tone and formality guided by context and gender.