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'Two meters of height': how Portuguese talks about size and measurements

In English, the measurement usually comes before an adjective: two meters tall, three meters deep, ten years old. Portuguese has no everyday adjective in that slot. It uses a noun that names the dimension and links it to the number with de: dois metros de altura, literally "two meters of height".

The pattern covers a whole family of words: altura, comprimento, largura, profundidade, idade, duração and more. English speakers often try to translate word for word and produce something like dois metros alto, which sounds wrong to any Portuguese speaker. Once you know the frame, it becomes very easy to use.

Word list
idadefA1 age dez anos de idade = ten years old áreafA2 area quinhentos metros quadrados de área = five hundred square meters in area distânciafA2 distance a dez minutos de distância = ten minutes away pesomA2 weight vinte quilos de peso = twenty kilos in weight alturafB1 height trinta metros de altura = thirty meters tall alturafB1 height um metro e oitenta de altura = one meter eighty tall comprimentomB1 length dois metros de comprimento = two meters long estaturafB1 height um metro e setenta de estatura = one meter seventy tall largurafB1 width um metro de largura = one meter wide profundidadefB1 depth três metros de profundidade = three meters deep volumemB1 volume dez metros cúbicos de volume = ten cubic meters in volume diâmetromB2 diameter dez centímetros de diâmetro = ten centimeters in diameter espessurafB2 thickness vinte centímetros de espessura = twenty centimeters thick grossurafB2 thickness dois centímetros de grossura = two centimeters thick duraçãofC1 duration com três horas de duração = three hours long perímetromC1 perimeter quarenta metros de perímetro = forty meters in perimeter envergadurafC2 wingspan dois metros de envergadura = a two-meter wingspan
How it works

The basic frame is number + unit + de + dimension noun. There is no article: you say de altura, never da altura. Usually the whole phrase follows the verb ter ("to have"), so a pool literally "has two meters of depth".

A piscina tem dois metros de profundidade.
(The pool is two meters deep.)

To describe a noun directly, the same phrase can follow com ("with"). This is how Portuguese builds the equivalent of English compound adjectives like three-hour-long.

É um filme com três horas de duração.
(It is a three-hour-long film.)

Rule of thumb: whenever English says X tall / long / wide / deep / thick / old, look for the matching noun and say ter X de + noun.

The words
Age

Idade works exactly like the others. In everyday speech de idade is often dropped (ele tem noventa anos), but the full form is common and correct.

O meu avô tem noventa anos de idade.
(My grandfather is ninety years old.)
Height

Altura is used for buildings and objects as well as for people. Estatura also means a person's height but sounds more formal, the kind of word you find in police reports or medical records.

O prédio tem trinta metros de altura.
(The building is thirty meters tall.)
O suspeito tem cerca de um metro e setenta de estatura.
(The suspect is about one meter seventy tall.)
Length, width, depth, thickness

Comprimento and largura often appear together. Profundidade covers anything deep. For thickness, espessura is the neutral, slightly technical word, while grossura is more colloquial.

A mesa tem dois metros de comprimento e um metro de largura.
(The table is two meters long and one meter wide.)
A parede tem vinte centímetros de espessura.
(The wall is twenty centimeters thick.)
Time and distance

Duração gives the length of an event. Distância usually comes after the preposition a, which marks how far away something is.

A praia fica a dez minutos de distância.
(The beach is ten minutes away.)
Weight, area and other measurements

Peso, área and perímetro follow the same frame, as do specialist words like envergadura for wings and diâmetro for circles.

A mala tem vinte quilos de peso.
(The suitcase weighs twenty kilos.)
O terreno tem quinhentos metros quadrados de área.
(The plot of land is five hundred square meters.)
O jardim tem quarenta metros de perímetro.
(The garden has a perimeter of forty meters.)
Esta águia tem dois metros de envergadura.
(This eagle has a two-meter wingspan.)
Watch out

The most common mistake is putting an adjective after the number, as in dois metros alto or três metros fundo. Portuguese needs the noun: dois metros de altura, três metros de profundidade.

For people's height and for weight, Portuguese also has a verb alternative that is often more natural in conversation: medir ("to measure") and pesar ("to weigh"). With these verbs you drop de + noun completely.

O meu irmão mede um metro e noventa.
(My brother is one meter ninety tall.)

So ele tem um metro e noventa de altura and ele mede um metro e noventa mean the same thing. Just do not mix the two frames: ele mede um metro e noventa de altura is redundant.

Finally, keep the order: number and unit first, then de + noun. When you ask about a dimension, the noun moves to the front: Qual é a altura do prédio? means "How tall is the building?"

Summary

Where English says two meters tall or ten years old, Portuguese says the number, then de plus a dimension noun with no article: dois metros de altura, dez anos de idade. Use it after ter (a mesa tem um metro de largura) or after com to describe a noun (um filme com duas horas de duração), and remember that medir and pesar are a handy alternative for height and weight.