Quase in Portuguese: Almost Everyone, Almost Nothing and Barely

Read the word after quase

Caldas Aulete’s quase entry records senses of proximity, a near occurrence, a quantity just short of an amount and being on the verge of an action. Here the focus is quantity and negative scope. The reference was checked on October 21, 2026.

• Quase todo mundo respondeu. — “Almost everyone replied.”
• Quase ninguém respondeu. — “Almost no one replied.”
• Comi quase tudo. — “I ate almost everything.”
• Não comi quase nada. — “I ate almost nothing.”

The first two have nearly opposite meanings because todo mundo and ninguém set different reference points. Quase does not turn a negative word into a positive one. In the last example, almost nothing describes a very small amount; it does not mean that you almost ate a large meal.

An action nearly happened—or nearly did not happen

• Quase comi o bolo inteiro. — “I almost ate the whole cake.”
• Quase não comi no almoço. — “I barely ate at lunch.”
• Quase perdi o ônibus. — “I almost missed the bus.”
• Quase não consegui entrar. — “I barely managed to get in.”

These are ordinary interpretations in the stated contexts. The negative changes what came close to happening. In the lunch sentence, the speaker ate little or hardly ate; with a repeated habit, context could instead emphasize how rarely someone ate. If the exact outcome matters, add it: Comi só um pouco — “I ate only a little” — or Mas consegui entrar — “But I managed to get in.”

Original dialogue: a small portion, not an almost-finished meal

B’s final line makes the amount clear. It is not a report that B nearly finished a large lunch. When listening to a food conversation, track the negative and the quantity rather than deciding the meaning immediately after the word quase.

Almost ten is different from about ten

• A gente esperou quase dez minutos. — “We waited almost ten minutes.”
• A gente esperou cerca de dez minutos. — “We waited about ten minutes.”
• A reunião durou pouco mais de dez minutos. — “The meeting lasted a little over ten minutes.”

In ordinary quantity descriptions, almost ten approaches ten without reaching it. About ten allows an approximation around ten, and a little over ten explicitly goes beyond it. These descriptions are not exact measurements, so ask for a time or deadline if precision is necessary.

For the near-miss expression por pouco não, which needs its own contextual interpretation, see por pouco and narrow margins. For rough quantities, compare por volta de and cerca de.

Practice: keep almost attached to the right idea

1. Compare quase todo mundo with quase ninguém.
2. Someone says Quase não comi. Which follow-up clarifies the amount?
3. Say that you ate almost all the rice.
4. Does quase dez normally mean eleven?
5. Add an explicit outcome to Quase não consegui entrar.

Continue with real conversation practice

For the wider food conversation that prompted this companion activity, see six Brazilian foods and the questions around them. The examples and exercises here are original written teaching material, not a transcript, quotation or additional audio recording.

Continue with Real Life Portuguese for native Brazilian audio and everyday expressions. Listen to a short exchange available in the app, identify what the speaker is doing and prepare your own reply. Bruno Lopes is a co-founder of the app. Use the written exercises here to prepare a reply of your own.