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Grammar
Explore the intricacies of Portuguese grammar
Passive Voice in Portuguese
The passive voice – as opposed to the active voice – highlights the recipient that is acted upon by the agent of the verb. Accordingly, the recipient of the action (be it a person or thing) becomes the subject of…
Present Continuous in Portuguese
In Portuguese, as in English, we use the present continuous to talk about ongoing actions. Note, however, that the present continuous in the European and Brazilian standards look slightly different. Let’s take a quick look at it. European Portuguese In European…
Portuguese Future Subjunctive – Conjugation and Usage
In the past, I’ve written about both the present and past subjunctive tenses. Now it is time for the future subjunctive. So, when do we use the future subjunctive in Portuguese? In short, we use the future subjunctive when referring…
Portuguese Regular Verbs in the Past Tense
Not long ago, I wrote about Portuguese regular verbs and conjugation patterns in the present tense. Now it is time to do the same for the past tense – for both the preterite and imperfect conjugations (pretérito perfeito and pretérito…
Para vs. Por in Portuguese – When to Use Either
Often, language learners get confused by the Portuguese prepositions para and por. While it is true that both are prepositions of movement, we use them under different circumstances. So, what’s the difference between para and por? Here’s a concise answer:…
Portuguese Spelling Reform 1990
In 1990, various Portuguese-speaking countries agreed on a spelling reform to create and maintain a cohesive, international standard across borders. In Portugal, in particular, the spelling reform came to effect in 2009 followed by a transitional 6-year period where the old…
Portuguese Articles – Definite and Indefinite
Most languages do well without articles. In this sense, English and Romance languages like Portuguese belong to a minority. The Portuguese definite articles – o, a, os, as – are the equivalent of “the” in English and we use them…
Portuguese Past Subjunctive: Conjugation and Usage
The subjunctive mood is often a source of much whining and moaning among Portuguese language learners – so many conjugations one must keep track of! We actually have three tenses within the subjunctive mood: past, present, and future. Today we…
Portuguese Possessive Pronouns and Determiners
Portuguese possessive pronouns and determiners indicate possession. In English, these are words like my, your, his, her, our, their (possessive determiners) and mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs (possessive pronouns). Both possessive pronouns and determiners look exactly the same in Portuguese. However, possessive determiners precede the noun…