Lenda vs. legenda
The Portuguese words lenda and legenda are very similar in spelling, which often creates confusion for English speakers due to a false friend effect. While they look related, they are used in completely different contexts. The word lenda is the direct translation of the English word legend in the sense of a myth or a very famous person. On the other hand, the word legenda translates to subtitle, caption, or the explanatory key of a map.
Lenda
B1The word lenda refers to a myth, a traditional folklore story passed down through generations, or a person who is extraordinarily famous and iconic in a specific field.
A lenda do boto cor-de-rosa é muito famosa na região amazônica.
(The pink river dolphin myth is very famous in the Amazon region.)
Pelé sempre será lembrado como uma verdadeira lenda do futebol mundial.
(Pele will always be remembered as a true legend of world football.)
Ninguém sabe se essa história é um fato histórico ou apenas uma lenda urbana.
(Nobody knows if this story is a historical fact or just an urban legend.)
Muitas crianças adoram ouvir as histórias e lendas do folclore brasileiro.
(Many children love listening to the stories and legends of Brazilian folklore.)
Aquela cantora transformou-se em uma lenda viva da música popular.
(That singer became a living legend of popular music.)
Legenda
A2The word legenda refers to the subtitles used in a movie or video, the caption written under a photograph or social media post, or the explanatory key on a map or chart.
Eu prefiro assistir aos filmes em inglês com a legenda em português ativada.
(I prefer watching English movies with the Portuguese subtitles turned on.)
A legenda da foto no jornal não explicava quem eram as pessoas na imagem.
(The photo caption in the newspaper did not explain who the people in the picture were.)
Verifique a legenda do mapa para entender o que cada cordenada significa.
(Check the map key to understand what each coordinate means.)
Ela demorou horas pensando em uma legenda engraçada para a sua postagem.
(She spent hours thinking of a funny caption for her post.)
Precisamos consertar a sincronização da legenda neste documentário.
(We need to fix the subtitle synchronization in this documentary.)
Summary
In short, the difference relies on separating storytelling from functional text. You must use lenda to talk about folklore, ancient myths, or iconic people. Conversely, you should use legenda when you are dealing with text on a screen such as subtitles, photo captions, or map keys.