Portuguese Defective Verbs
Defective verbs are verbs with incomplete conjugation. For instance, Portuguese defective verbs are only conjugated in the 3-person (singular or plural). Some defective verbs are commonplace so…
Portuguese Yes-or-No Questions
In Portuguese specifically, yes-or-no questions look the same as declarative sentences, that is, the word order is kept unchanged. A few examples: DeclarativeTu estás no Porto. You are…
The Verb Ter in Portuguese
In short, the verb Ter is the Portuguese equivalent of Have in English as both share the same basic meaning and are used to form Perfect tenses:…
Passive Voice in Portuguese
Passive voice – as opposed to Active voice – highlights the recipient that is acted upon by the agent of the verb. Accordingly, the recipient of the…
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…
Conditional in Portuguese
In Portuguese, we use the Conditional tense to express desire, talk about unreal scenarios, or convey politeness. As you’ll soon see, however, the Imperfect tense (Pretérito Imperfeito)…
Unveiling the Sounds of Portugal and Brazil: A Pronunciation Guide
Ever wondered why Brazilian Portuguese sounds like a lively samba, while European Portuguese feels more like a classic fado? Portuguese spoken in Brazil sounds more open and…
Future Tense in Portuguese
In Portuguese, as in English, the Future tense is normally used to refer to actions that haven’t yet taken place. In what follows, I will walk you…
Portuguese Past Tenses – Usage Rundown Anchored to English
In this article, we will take a look at the Portuguese equivalents of the English Past Simple, Past Continuous, and Past Perfect tenses. Past Simple Preterite –…
Portuguese Idioms with “Pé”
Getting acquainted with Portuguese idiomatic expressions is key to reaching language fluency and feeling at home with day-to-day lingo. Today, I am bringing you 13 frequently-used Portuguese…
Portuguese Present Tense – Usage Rundown Anchored to English
This article concerns Portuguese equivalents to the English Present Simple, Present Continuous, and Present Perfect tenses. We will be mostly focusing on usage, not conjugation. To learn…
Portuguese Verbs “Ir” vs. “Andar” – Know When to Use Either
I’ve noticed that Portuguese language learners often use the verb Andar when they want to say Ir, and vice-versa. This happens almost without exception in a context…
Portuguese Future Subjunctive (Futuro do Conjuntivo) – Conjugation and Usage
If you have been learning Portuguese long enough, you know that sooner or later you’ve got to come to grips with the Future Subjunctive (Futuro do Conjuntivo).…
Portuguese Idioms to Help You Sound More Natural
Portuguese idioms are at the heart of everyday life language. What’s special about such idiomatic expressions is that they transcend the literal meanings of their word constituents. …
Para vs. Por in Portuguese – When to Use Either
Language learners often get confused by the Portuguese prepositions para and por. While it is true that both are prepositions of movement, we use them under different…
Portuguese Definite and Indefinite Articles – How and When to Use Them
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,…
Portuguese Past Subjunctive (Imperfeito do Conjuntivo)
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 have…
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). Possessive pronouns and determiners…