Kitchen Utensils in Portuguese: A Brazilian Vocabulary Guide
Build a practical kitchen vocabulary set with the words for a knife, cutting board, pan, pot, whisk, and other common utensils.
Real Life Portuguese · 6 min read · Updated October 15, 2026
The short answer
A knife is a faca, a cutting board is a tábua (often tábua de cortar), and a grater is a ralador. These nouns help you understand simple requests and describe which tool is missing.
Start with the tools you use to prepare food
Learn each noun with its article: a faca, a tábua, o ralador. The article gives you a useful gender cue when you later add an adjective, as in uma faca afiada (a sharp knife).
Onde está a tábua de cortar?
Where is the cutting board?
Preciso de uma faca pequena.
I need a small knife.
Name pots, pans, and cooking tools
Panela is a pot or pan in everyday Brazilian Portuguese; the exact English translation depends on its shape and use. Frigideira is a frying pan, assadeira is a baking dish or roasting pan, and tampa is a lid.
For mixing, use colher (spoon), espátula (spatula), batedor de arame (whisk), or liquidificador (blender). You may also hear fouet for a whisk, but batedor de arame is a clear descriptive term.
A frigideira está no armário de cima.
The frying pan is in the top cupboard.
Você pode pegar a tampa da panela?
Can you get the pot lid?
Vou bater a massa no liquidificador.
I’m going to blend the batter in the blender.
Ask for the utensil by name
Use você viu…? to ask whether someone has seen an item, or tem…? to ask whether it is available. A polite por favor keeps a short request friendly, especially when you are cooking in someone else’s home.
If you do not know the noun, describe the tool’s purpose and ask what it is called. That gives the other person a chance to supply the word rather than ending the conversation.
Você viu o abridor de latas?
Have you seen the can opener?
Como se chama essa ferramenta?
What is this tool called?
Put it into practice
Memorize a utensil with its article and a short question. The tool’s cooking purpose can help you describe it when the name does not come to mind.
Quick practice
Which Portuguese example matches “What is this tool called”?
Choose an answer to check yourself.
Keep practicing with the Real Life Portuguese app
Build on this guide with everyday expressions and native Brazilian audio. Choose iPhone, Android, or the web app.