Archive for 'Learning'
Portuguese Plurals: Part III Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 25, 2008
Today we’re going to do the last part in the plural nouns series, to finish up with the irregular nouns. 1. Words ending in al With these nouns, the al changes to ais. sinal –> sinais [stoplight -> stoplights] capital –> capitais [capital -> capitals] moral –> morais [moral –> morals] 2. Words ending in…
Portuguese Plurals: Part II Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 21, 2008
Today we’re going to continue our lesson about plural nouns in Portuguese. We’re going to take a look at some of the irregular nouns. When a noun ends in “ão,” there are different rules for how to make it plural, and it is simply a matter of memorization to remember which nouns have which rule…
Portuguese Plurals: Part I Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 16, 2008
Plural nouns in Portuguese can be a little confusing, so we’re going to take a look at them in a three part series. Today, we’re going to look at the set of regular nouns, which are the easiest to deal with. 1. Words ending in vowelsJust add an “s.” janela –> janelas [window -> windows]cotovelo…
Origins of Portuguese Expressions Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 11, 2008
Today we’re going to look at a few Portuguese expressions and their origins in the state of Minas Gerais. 1. Lavar à égua This expressions means “to do well,” “to have success,” or to “enjoy oneself.” It originated in Minas Gerais during the gold boom, when horses and donkeys were used to haul the gold…
Portuguese Verb Conjugation: Future Tense Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 9, 2008
Today we’re going to look at how to conjugate regular verbs in the future tense, which is the same for ar, er, and ir verbs. In this case, we add the conjugation to the infinitive, instead of cutting off part of the infinitive like in other verb tenses. This verb tense is used in the…
Portuguese Verb Conjugation: Present Tense Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 2, 2008
Today we’re going to start a series about Portuguese verbs. First, we’re going to start with the easiest tense (present), working with regular verbs. In spoken Portuguese, the four tenses you will most frequently hear are eu (I), você/ele/ela (you/he/she), nós (we) and vocês/eles/elas (all of you/them/them), so we’re going to focus on them. Let’s…
Namorar Posted by Transparent Language on Aug 26, 2008
Namorar and the various offshoots have several meanings, so let’s take a look. 1. Namorar (I) This means dating. Estamos namorando tem um ano. We’ve been dating for a year. Estavam namorando mas terminaram. They were dating but they broke up. 2. Namorar (II) This means cuddling, snuggling, showing affection or caressing. O casal jovem…