CIPLE A2 speaking practice
The speaking part of CIPLE, the A2 exam in Portuguese as a foreign language, takes 15 minutes, usually two candidates with one examiner, and counts for 25% of the exam. Practise it here with ten real lines from speakers in Portugal, grouped by the parts of the exam: hear a line, say it after the speaker, record and compare, then say your own answer. Free, no account.
Practise one line now
Podia-se descrever em três palavras?
“Could you describe yourself in three words?” An interviewer’s question, the kind Part I opens with.
1:01–1:04 · Talk the Streets, street interview in Portugal · Opens on “After the speaker”
Podia-se is a polite “could you”, said fast: “pu-DEE-uh-s’”. Repeat the question, then answer it with three words of your own.
What happens in the CIPLE speaking part
From CAPLE’s CIPLE page (CAPLE is the University of Lisbon’s centre that sets the exam), read on 25 October 2026:
| Part | In the exam |
|---|---|
| Who is in the room | Two candidates at the same time whenever possible, with the examiner |
| Part I | The examiner talks with the candidates about personal identification: who you are, family, work or studies, free time |
| Part II | A simulated everyday situation, public or personal, such as asking the way, booking a room, buying something or ordering a meal |
| Part III | A conversation with the examiner on a topic from current events, where you give simple opinions |
| Time | 15 minutes for each pair of candidates |
| Weight | 25% of the exam; reading and writing count 45% and listening 30% |
| To pass | At least 55% overall (Suficiente 55–69%, Bom 70–84%, Muito Bom 85–100%) |
CAPLE’s page links sample papers for the reading and writing part and for the listening part, with the audio. It gives no sample for speaking, which is why this page uses real speakers instead.
Part I: talk about yourself
A question first, then three answers from people in Portugal, short to long. Say each line after the speaker, then the same shape with your own details: O meu nome é…, tenho … anos, vivo em…, sou…
Podia-se descrever em três palavras?
“Could you describe yourself in three words?” An interviewer’s question, the kind Part I opens with.
1:01–1:04 · Talk the Streets, street interview in Portugal · Opens on “After the speaker”
Podia-se is a polite “could you”, said fast: “pu-DEE-uh-s’”. Repeat the question, then answer it with three words of your own.
Simpático, carismático e trabalhador.
“Friendly, charismatic and hard-working.” A three-word answer to that question.
3:17–3:21 · Talk the Streets, street interview in Portugal · Opens on “After the speaker”
Each word has one strong syllable: sim-PA-ti-ku, ka-rizh-MA-ti-ku, tra-ba-lyuh-DOR. The t stays a plain t, not the Brazilian “chi”, and the lh of trabalhador is like the “lli” in “million”.
Eu sou uma pessoa honesta, bem disposta e amigo do seu amigo.
“I’m an honest, cheerful person and a loyal friend.” A longer answer, built on Eu sou uma pessoa…
5:39–5:44 · Talk the Streets, street interview in Portugal · Opens on “After the speaker”
amigo do seu amigo is an everyday way to say “a loyal friend” in Portugal. Before a t, the s of honesta and disposta is “sh”: o-NESH-tuh, dish-POSH-tuh.
O meu nome é Inês Bispo, tenho 22 anos, vivo na Costa da Caparica
“My name is Inês Bispo, I’m 22, I live in Costa da Caparica.” A surfer from Portugal introduces herself.
0:38–0:42 · Talk the Streets, interview with surfer Inês Bispo · Opens on “After the speaker”
Name, age and where you live, in one breath: the first things Part I asks. The s of Inês and Bispo is “sh”. Say it after her, then with your own details.
Part II: everyday situations
CAPLE’s list for this part includes asking the way, booking a room, buying something, ordering in a restaurant, the post office or the bank, and explaining a health problem. Say these sentences aloud in the Portuguese of Portugal. They are examples written for this page, not lines from a video, so Sada does not check them: match the sounds you practised in the lines above by ear.
- At a café: “A coffee, please.” Queria um café, se faz favor.
- In a shop: “How much is it?” Quanto custa?
- Asking the way: “Excuse me, where is the train station?” Desculpe, onde fica a estação de comboios?
- At a hotel: “I’d like to book a room for two nights.” Queria reservar um quarto para duas noites.
- At the doctor’s or the chemist’s: “I have a headache.” Dói-me a cabeça.
Part III: give your opinion
Three lines from Marco Neves’s TEDxPorto talk about accents, each built the way a short opinion is: a statement, then a reason or a judgment.
Eu tenho sotaque e isso é um problema.
“I have an accent and that is a problem.” In his TEDxPorto talk, Marco Neves quotes what many people think, and then argues against it.
2:54–2:58 · Marco Neves, TEDxPorto · Opens on “After the speaker”
tenho: the nh is the “ny” of “canyon”. um is a nasal vowel with no real m at the end. isso é links into one word: “ee-su-EH”.
O problema não é da pessoa, se pensarmos bem.
“The problem isn’t the person’s, if we really think about it.”
4:18–4:20 · Marco Neves, TEDxPorto · Opens on “After the speaker”
se pensarmos bem (“if we think about it”) is a ready way to round off an opinion. The ão of não goes through the nose, with no n at the end.
Nós nunca vamos ter uma língua só com um sotaque, isso é impossível.
“We will never have a language with only one accent: that is impossible.”
3:20–3:24 · Marco Neves, TEDxPorto · Opens on “After the speaker”
An opinion, then isso é… (“that is…”) to judge it: a frame you can reuse on any topic. impossível ends in a dark l, as in “full”.
Phrases that keep you talking
When a word will not come, a ready phrase keeps the conversation going. All three come from the same street interview.
O que significa pragmático?
“What does pragmático mean?” The interviewer asks about a word the speaker chose.
1:12–1:16 · Talk the Streets, street interview in Portugal · Opens on “After the speaker”
Use the same question in a conversation whenever you miss a word: O que significa…? Keep the stress on the third syllable of significa: sig-ni-FEE-kuh.
Acho que posso dizer assim.
“I think I can put it that way.” Said after explaining a word in her own way.
4:41–4:42 · Talk the Streets, street interview in Portugal · Opens on “After the speaker”
Acho que… (“I think…”) starts many answers at A2. The ch is “sh”, and posso keeps a clear double s: “PO-su”.
Eu nem sei explicar bem a palavra
“I can’t even explain the word properly.” It buys time while she looks for words, and she then explains it anyway.
4:32–4:34 · Talk the Streets, street interview in Portugal · Opens on “After the speaker”
nem is nasal: the e goes through the nose and the m is not said. Say the line calmly; it is a natural pause, not a mistake.
What Sada can and cannot tell you
After each take, Compare marks the words Sada recognised against the captions and the ones it missed, and gives your timing against the speaker. That shows a dropped word or a line you stopped in the middle of. It does not grade your accent or individual sounds, and its speech model writes European and Brazilian Portuguese the same way, so judge the sounds by ear against the speaker.
Sada is not connected with CAPLE. Its lines are not exam items, and its result is not a CIPLE mark and does not predict one.
Do you need CIPLE?
For Portuguese nationality, the rules ask for Portuguese at A2, and a CIPLE certificate is one of the accepted proofs. Europe Simple’s guide to Portuguese citizenship by residence lists every accepted proof, with its official sources. For dates, centres and fees, check CAPLE’s page.
Keep going
The sounds of Portugal, with nine more lines from speakers there and how they differ from Brazil: European Portuguese shadowing. Learning the Portuguese of Brazil instead: Brazilian Portuguese speaking practice. For ão, em and the other nasal vowels: Portuguese nasal vowels.
Questions people ask
What is in the CIPLE A2 speaking exam?
Three parts, usually with two candidates and one examiner: questions about you (personal identification), a simulated everyday situation such as asking the way or ordering a meal, and a short conversation on a current topic. It lasts 15 minutes per pair and counts for 25% of the exam, according to CAPLE’s page.
How can I practise for the CIPLE speaking part for free?
Say real lines from speakers in Portugal after them, record yourself and compare, then answer the same kind of question about yourself aloud. Each line on this page opens in Sada in After the speaker mode, free and with no account.
What mark do I need to pass CIPLE?
CAPLE’s page gives a pass from 55% overall: Suficiente from 55% to 69%, Bom from 70% to 84% and Muito Bom from 85% to 100%.
Does Sada give a CIPLE score?
No. Sada is not connected with CAPLE. It shows which of your words it recognised against the captions and your timing, which helps you hear dropped words, but it is not a CIPLE mark.
Practise again tomorrow? Get one short sentence a day, ready to record in one tap.
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A slow line to begin with: listen to how “don’t need to” runs together, then say it at the speaker’s pace.
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