só
Portuguese, adjective
só is spelled S-Ó (2 letters) and appears 1,738 times per million words in written Portuguese, the 52nd most frequent Portuguese word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Só is a Portuguese feminine adjective meaning “only; just (alone in a category)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). On this page, SO is a different word: “acronym of sistema operacional (“OS, operating system”)”. With an accent, sô is a different word: “alternative form of senhor (as a title)”. The Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) defines it as “solitário, sem companhia, sem círculo social”.
What does só mean in English?
adjective
- 1
femininemasculineonly; just (alone in a category)
Só um carro já é suficiente.
- 2
femininemasculineonly; just (no more than)
Só três pessoas vão receber o prémio.
- 3
femininemasculineonly; merely; just (introduces a number or object with the implication that it is small or insufficient)
Tomo só uma cerveja por mês.
adjective
- 1
femininemasculinealone (by oneself; not accompanied)
Você está só?
- 2
femininemasculinelonely; solitary (living or being by oneself)
Senti-me só.
adverb
- 1
only; just (indicates that no other action is/was/will be performed)
Nós só comemos carne.
- 2
only; merely; just; simply (indicates that the action is not significant)
Eles só roubaram uns clipes.
- 3
alone (unaccompanied or without help)
Prefiro morar só.
noun
- 1
masculineacronym of sistema operacional (“OS, operating system”)
prefix
- 1
sub- (under, beneath)
noun
- 1
Brazilcolloquialmasculinealternative form of senhor (as a title)
Source: English Wiktionary, Portuguese section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How Portuguese dictionaries define it
abbreviation: 1. sistema operacional, sistema operativo 2. sudoeste
adjective: 1. solitário, sem companhia, sem círculo social 2. isolado, único 3. sem parceiro, solteiro 4. pleno e demasiado
adverb: 1. apenas, somente, unicamente
noun: 1. cobertura do cortiço 2. o fundo de uma vasilha, o fundo de uma agulha
pronoun: 1. o mesmo que senhor
prefix: 1. indica inferior, debaixo, sob
The definition in the Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário), in Portuguese.
Source: Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of só
- SOs plural
- sós error-unknown-tag obsolete plural
- sò alternative obsolete
Source: English Wiktionary and Portuguese Wiktionary (Wikcionário) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to só
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is só in Portuguese?
só appears 1,738 times per million words in written Portuguese.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).