Archive for 'Learning'
Porque, Por que and Por quê Posted by Transparent Language on Oct 1, 2007
A common error in Portuguese is the misuse and confusion of these three similar phrases (and two more words). Let’s clarify briefly: Por quê (two words, with circumflex accent on ‘e’) can only occur at the end of an indirect or direct interrogative phrase: Interrogação direta: Eline não chegou ainda, por quê? Interrogação indireta: Eline…
1000 Words You Already Know in Portuguese Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 20, 2007
Did you know that you can use a large swath of your English vocabulary in Portuguese? It is no secret that Portuguese is a Romance Language and that it shares many cognates with languages such as French, Italian, Spanish and English. Since this blog focuses on helping English speakers learn Portuguese, let’s dive into an…
To Become Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 19, 2007
How do you translate the English verb ‘to become’ into Portuguese? Short Answer: it depends Long Answer: It is very helpful to examine 5 common applications of to become and the most appropriate counterparts in Portuguese. 1. To represent a long gradual change, or a change that results from a great intellectual effort, use the…
‘Amanhã’ vs ‘A manhã’ Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 14, 2007
Amanhã means tomorrow, while a manhã means the morning. Frequently confused by Portuguese learners, these two words are separate and non-interchangeable. Some related common phrases are café da manhã (breakfast), amanhã de manhã (tomorrow morning), and Manhã de Carnaval, or Carnival Morning, the famous theme to the movie Black Orpheus written by Luis Bonfá and…
Imperatives Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 11, 2007
The imperative form in Portuguese is pretty easy to use. To command action, as the form is most commonly used to do, you can simply use the Você or Vocês form of the (regular) verb. the reason for this is that it is common to use the Tu form of the subjunctive, which for regular…
Fazer Questão Posted by Transparent Language on Sep 5, 2007
Fazer is a great phrasal verb (like ficar)that has many meanings based on the context and also the use of additional, modifying prepositions or adverbs. Today let’s discover another use of fazer that indicates insistence: fazer questão. Here’s an example from Guilherme: “Eu faço questão que você jante comigo.” “I insist that you dine with…
Phrases about Time Posted by Transparent Language on Aug 31, 2007
This is not a post about how to tell time. Today I will show the best ways of saying common time-related phrases in Portuguese, such as a long, long time ago. Easy to learn and helpful to know, I hope you all enjoy these phrases Em tempos remotos A long, long time ago De vez…