The Portuguese preposition de is a preposition of origin and the Portuguese equivalent to from in English. Additionally, we use de to indicate possession, modify a noun, express time, and in many verb constructions.
Let’s dive in.
Contracted forms
The preposition de merges with determiners, mostly articles and demonstratives. Here’s a breakdown of these contractions:
de + articles
By default, de merges with any article following it:
| definite articles | o | a | os | as |
| do (de + o) | da (de + a) | dos (de + os) | das (de + as) | |
| indefinite articles | um | uma | uns | umas |
| dum (de + um) | duma (de + uma) | duns (de + uns) | dumas (de + umas) |
💡We often say and write de um instead of dum, or de uma instead of duma. Both are correct.
de + demonstratives
When preceding demonstrative determiners, de often merges with them in a contracted form:
| this | isto | este/s | esta/s |
| disto (de + isto) | deste/s (de + este/s) | desta/s (de + esta/s) | |
| that | isso | esse/s | essa/s |
| disso (de + isso) | desse/s (de + esse/s) | dessa/s (de + essa/s) | |
| that over there | aquilo | aquele/s | aquela/s |
| daquilo (de + aquilo) | daquele/s (de + aquele/s) | daquela/s (de + aquela/s) |
Other common contractions
| other | outro/s | outra/s |
| doutro/s (de + outro/s) | doutra/s (de + outra/s) | |
| some | algum/alguns | alguma/s |
| dalgum/dalguns (de + algum) | dalguma/s (de + alguma) | |
| someone | alguém | |
| dalguém (em + alguém) | ||
| here/there | aqui | aí |
| daqui (em + aqui) | daí (de + aí) | |
| he/she/they | ele/s | ela/s |
| dele/s (de + ele/s) | dela/s (de + ela/s) | |
| where | onde | |
| donde (de + onde) | ||
| before | antes | |
| dantes (de + antes) |
Usage
Origin
De is first and foremost used to express origin:
Eu venho do Paquistão.
I come from Pakistan.
Ela é do Minho.
She’s from the Minho region.
Possession
We use de to indicate possession, similar to ‘s in English:
Aquela é a casa da Isabel.
That’s Isabel’s house.
Esta é a quinta do Miguel.
This is Miguel’s farm.
Modifier
When one noun modifies another, we link them with a plain de:
Copo de vinho
Wine glass
Máquina de café
Coffee machine
Cadeira de plástico
Plastic chair
Casa de madeira
Wooden house
Time
We use de to express time.
With parts of the day, we use de (plain form) to refer to mornings:
Ela trabalha de manhã e está livre à tarde.
She works in the morning and is free in the afternoon.
💡 As you see in the example above, we use a (contracted), not de, to refer to the afternoon (or evening).
We use de to clarify whether a time refers to the morning or the afternoon/evening (am vs pm).
O curso começa às 8 da manhã e acaba às 4 da tarde.
The course starts at 8 am and finishes at 4 pm.
We use a plain de with dates:
Ontem foi 23 de fevereiro de 2021.
Yesterday was the 23rd of February, 2021.
Finally, we use de to indicate time spans as in from… to…; in Portuguese, de… a…:
Eu trabalho de segunda a sexta.
I work from Monday to Friday.
Mode of transport
We use a plain de to indicate mode of transport (like “by” in English):
Vou para a escola de autocarro.
I go to school by bus.
… de comboio.
… by train.
… de carro.
… by car.
But,
… a cavalo.
on horseback.
… a pé.
on foot.
💡We use em (not de), when we talk about any specific train or bus:
Vou para Braga no comboio das 9h.
I’ll go to Braga on the 9 am train.
Verb + de
Some verbs are often followed by the preposition de:
Gostar de
Always followed by de:
Gostas de pescar?
Do you enjoy fishing?
Gosto daquela* camisa ali.
I like that shirt over there.
* daquela = de+aquela
Ter de
Ter de means must or have to:
Tens de parar de fumar!
You must stop smoking.
🔍 Learn more about Portuguese Equivalents of English Modal Verbs.
Precisar de
Precisar de means to need to:
Ele precisava de falar comigo.
He needed to talk to me.
Precisas de praticar mais.
You need to practice more.
Acabar
Acabar de is a grammaticalized expression that means have just done something:
Acabei de fazer o jantar.
I just cooked dinner.
Ele acabou de sair.
He just left.
Other verbs
| Falar Talk Estás a falar de quê? What are you talking about? | Mudar Change Vou mudar de escola. I will change schools. | Sair Leave/go out A que horas sais de casa? What time do you leave home? |
| Chegar Arrive Cheguei agora do trabalho. I just came from work. | Lembrar-se Remember Lembras-te do Ricardo? Do you remember Ricardo? |
🔍 Learn more about other Basic Portuguese Prepositions.
