Noun
In Portuguese, all nouns have a gender. Commonly, feminine nouns end in -a and masculine nouns end in -o:
Ex: - feminine nouns: a menina, a criança, a escola, a mesa, a casa. (the girl, the child, the school, the table, the house)
- masculine nouns: o menino, o trabalho, o carro, o suco, o mercado. ( the boy, the work, the car, the juice, the market)
There are many nouns that just follow that simply rule to mark the gender of the actual person they refer to:
ex: o menino, a menina (the boy, the girl)
o velho, a velha (the old man, the old woman)
o médico, a médica (the (male) doctor, the (female) doctor)
o tio, a tia (the uncle, the aunt)
However, there are exceptions. Many nouns end in different vowels, or consonants, or just don't follow the rule of -a for feminine, or -o for masculine.
ex: o homem (the man)
a mulher (the woman)
a viajem (the travel)
o sol (the sun)
Tip: Since most nouns are preceded by an article, it will give you a hint of the gender of unknown words!
Ex: - feminine nouns: a menina, a criança, a escola, a mesa, a casa. (the girl, the child, the school, the table, the house)
- masculine nouns: o menino, o trabalho, o carro, o suco, o mercado. ( the boy, the work, the car, the juice, the market)
There are many nouns that just follow that simply rule to mark the gender of the actual person they refer to:
ex: o menino, a menina (the boy, the girl)
o velho, a velha (the old man, the old woman)
o médico, a médica (the (male) doctor, the (female) doctor)
o tio, a tia (the uncle, the aunt)
However, there are exceptions. Many nouns end in different vowels, or consonants, or just don't follow the rule of -a for feminine, or -o for masculine.
ex: o homem (the man)
a mulher (the woman)
a viajem (the travel)
o sol (the sun)
Tip: Since most nouns are preceded by an article, it will give you a hint of the gender of unknown words!
Article
Articles precede nouns, and agree with them in number and gender. You also use articles in English when you say "a car", or "the game". And as in English, Portuguese has definite and indefinite articles.
Definite Articles (The)
Feminine: a, as Masculine: o, os
Definite articles are used when you refer to a specific noun. For instance, you are talking about the TV you have just bought, so you will say "a televisão", because you are referring to a particular thing (the TV). Pay attention to how the forms of the article are used in agreement with nouns:
O homem A mulher
Os carros (the cars) As bicicletas (the bikes)
Importante:We use the definite article before people's names: o João, a Fernanda, o José, a Maria.
Indefinite Articles (A)
Feminine: uma, umas Masculine: um, uns
Indefinite articles, therefore, are used when you do not refer to a specific object / thing. Going back to previous example, if you are just saying you need a TV but it is not talking about any in particular, you will say "uma televisão" (a TV).
Um homem Uma mulher
Uns carros Umas bibicletas
Definite Articles (The)
Feminine: a, as Masculine: o, os
Definite articles are used when you refer to a specific noun. For instance, you are talking about the TV you have just bought, so you will say "a televisão", because you are referring to a particular thing (the TV). Pay attention to how the forms of the article are used in agreement with nouns:
O homem A mulher
Os carros (the cars) As bicicletas (the bikes)
Importante:We use the definite article before people's names: o João, a Fernanda, o José, a Maria.
Indefinite Articles (A)
Feminine: uma, umas Masculine: um, uns
Indefinite articles, therefore, are used when you do not refer to a specific object / thing. Going back to previous example, if you are just saying you need a TV but it is not talking about any in particular, you will say "uma televisão" (a TV).
Um homem Uma mulher
Uns carros Umas bibicletas
Ser e Estar
The verb To Be has two forms in Portuguese: Ser and Estar.
Ser indicates a fairly permanent characteristic of a person or object. For instance, if a man is skinny, he will most likely be skinny for a long period of time; even if he gains weight, it will take a long period of time for him to do so. Ser is also used to indicate location, ex. a igreja é aqui (the church is here). In Portuguese all verbs are conjugated and have a specific form for each pronoun (he, she, it, they, I, you, we) they refer to. Pay attention to how the verb changes:
Conjugation: Ser
Eu sou um professor. (I am a teacher)
Você é alto. (You are tall)
Ele/Ela é gordo (a). (He/She is fat)
Nós somos magros. (We are skinny)
Eles são irmãos. (They are brothers)
Estar indicates temporary condition. When you say “a man is sad”, it means he is said now, but it does not mean he will be sad for a long time; tomorrow he may not be sad anymore. Here is how the verb Estar is conjugated:
Conjugation: Estar
Eu estou triste. (I am sad)
Você está feliz. (You are happy)
Ele/Ela está doente. (He/She is sick)
Nós estamos com fome. (We are hungry)
Eles estão cansados. (They are tired)
Tip: Download the worksheet to practice these verbs.