Hey, @tlaw387! As @joelrendall said and as you’ve figured out in the meantime, it’s the same sound in até and amigo. But you’re right that the pronunciation of A isn’t 100% consistent, because of a number of exceptions to the general rule of thumb, which is…
I wouldn’t say always, but it’s what happens more often than not.
Examples of closed As in unstressed syllables (following the rule):
- até, amigo, agora, artista, ajuda, amor, aranha, aviso, advogado, astuto…
Examples of open As in stressed syllables (following the rule):
- arco, água, atirar, armário, aquário, arma, arara…
A água
Ajudar
Examples of closed As in stressed syllables (exception to the rule):
- anjo, âmago, âncora, ângulo, comando, amante…
O anjo
Examples of open As in unstressed syllables (exception to the rule):
- ator, alçapão, alforreca, saltar, Algarve, alcoólico, alpendre, altar, alperce…
The sound of these As is more influenced by adjacent vowels than adjacent consonants. In Portuguese, when an A is close to another vowel (e.g. word that ends in a vowel + word that starts with one), it tends to be pronounced more openly.
A avó pinta os lábios → the two supposedly closed As merge into a long open A