Most words that have been borrowed from Portuguese came during the era of Portuguese exploration; these are animals and plants found around the world ("cobra", "flamingo"). Some words are from Brazilian Portuguese ("Bossa Nova").
| Word | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| albino | white | |
| Bossa Nova | new tendency | Brazilian samba-like dance. |
| breeze | light wind | |
| caste | pure | Hindu hereditary class. |
| cobra | hood | A poisonous hooded snake. One of many animal / bird words from Portuguese. |
| Creole | home-born slave | A mixed race or language. |
| dodo | fool | From the silly appearance of the now extinct flightless bird. |
| embarrass | ||
| emu | Large flightless, running Australian bird. | |
| fetish | charm | Worshipped object. |
| flamingo | flaming | Tall scarlet wading bird. |
| Lambada | Brazilian dance. | |
| marmalade | quince | Preserve made from citrus fruit. |
| massage | dough | Because dough is kneaded. |
| molasses | Used in USA. In UK the word 'treacle' is used. | |
| palaver | word | A 'palaver' is UK slang for an argument. |
| port | A drink named after its town of origin. |
