In Portuguese, the naming of does not take inspiration from the planets and gods, as is the case for many other languages. Instead, they are simply numbered. The origin of the names of the days of the week in Portuguese The numbering of each weekday in Portuguese might have to do with ancient Easter celebrations, […]
Days of the Week
Aprender Português? Vejo-me Grego! (Video)
Learning Portuguese? I'm Seeing Myself Greek (I'm Struggling)!
In this video, Joel (o Canadiano) interviews Pedro, a personal trainer in Lisboa. When he saw which videos and website his Greek girlfriend was using to learn Portuguese, he immediately recognized Rui and Joel as members of the gym!
Instead of just taking a photo together, we decided it would be a bigger surprise for her to see her boyfriend pop up in her YouTube activity feed! So we recorded this interview to make it happen…
During the conversation, we discuss:
• Common challenges that make Portuguese difficult for non-natives to master
• Learning your partner’s language while in a relationship
• Specific grammar and pronunciation peculiarities in European Portuguese
Disclaimer: Since this interview is spontaneous and Joel is not a native speaker, he makes a few mistakes (eg. “Isto é” instead of “Este é” when introducing Pedro!) Members who see the subtitles / transcription will see the corrections, and hopefully learn from these common errors. But for those who just hear the audio or view the video without subtitles, just make sure to take Joel’s grammar with a grain of salt and focus more on Pedro! 🙂
Aprender Português? Vejo-me Grego! (Video)
Learning Portuguese? I'm seeing myself Greek (I'm struggling)!
In this video, Joel (o Canadiano) interviews Pedro, a personal trainer in Lisboa. When he saw which videos and website his Greek girlfriend was using to learn Portuguese, he immediately recognized Rui and Joel as members of the gym!
Instead of just taking a photo together, we decided it would be a bigger surprise for her to see her boyfriend pop up in her YouTube activity feed! So we recorded this interview to make it happen…
During the conversation, we discuss:
• Common challenges that make Portuguese difficult for non-natives to master
• Learning your partner’s language while in a relationship
• Specific grammar and pronunciation peculiarities in European Portuguese
Disclaimer: Since this interview is spontaneous and Joel is not a native speaker, he makes a few mistakes (eg. “Isto é” instead of “Este é” when introducing Pedro!) Members who see the subtitles / transcription will see the corrections, and hopefully learn from these common errors. But for those who just hear the audio or view the video without subtitles, just make sure to take Joel’s grammar with a grain of salt and focus more on Pedro! 🙂
Combining "A" With Demonstratives
As previously mentioned, the preposition can be combined with the articles o, a, os, and as to become ao, à, aos, and às. As far as demonstratives are concerned, a can only form contractions with aquele(s), aquela(s), and aquilo. A + Variable Demonstratives a + aquele = a + aqueles = a + aquela = […]
The Preposition "A"
A is a very important and versatile Portuguese preposition. It can correspond to many different English words, depending on the context. For example: – i.e. “From here to a week” – Within the time frame from now until a week from now More often than not, it means “to”, but it’s important not to get […]
Combining "Em" with Demonstratives
The preposition can be combined with variable and invariable demonstratives to form a number of very useful contractions. Remember that all the same rules for demonstratives remain valid when they appear in the following contractions. Em + Variable Demonstratives Relative Position Demonstrative Contraction Near the speaker: Near the listener: Away from both: These contractions can be used […]
Combining "De" with Demonstratives
You learned in The Preposition “De” (from the first Prepositions unit) that de has several different meanings and can be joined together (contracted) with: articles (do, da, dos, das), and pronouns (dele, dela, deles, delas) De + Variable Demonstratives Another very common combination is with demonstratives. Let’s look at the contractions formed by combining with variable demonstratives: […]
Digging Deeper into Prepositions
You have learned that prepositions are usually small, but important, words that usually come before a noun to show how it relates to other elements in the sentence. An important part of mastering European Portuguese is not only learning the meaning of each of these prepositions, but also the nuances of when each one should […]
Invariable Demonstrative Pronouns
In the previous lessons of this unit, you learned about variable demonstratives, which change depending on the gender and number of the objects(s) they describe. Here’s some good news for you: invariable demonstrative pronouns are much easier to learn, because as you can see below, there are only 3 of them. You still have to consider the […]
Dicas Do Rui: Como Viajar Com Uma Mochila (Video)
Rui's Tips: How to Travel with a Backpack (Video)
No, we’re not getting into luggage sales… But since Rui spent many hours researching the best travel gear, leading up to his trip to Argentina, we decided to take advantage of his new-found knowledge to create this video, exploring new vocabulary surrounding travel, clothing, and more!
Note: We have no affiliation with and receive no compensation for any of the products mentioned in this video… (too bad!)
Variable Demonstratives
As we mentioned, when you say this, that, these, or those in Portuguese, you have to be a little more specific… Variable demonstratives are used to indicate all of the following at once: a person or object’s gender the number (one or more) the position in space or time The gender and number part is […]
Introduction to Portuguese Demonstratives
The European Portuguese demonstratives are este(s), esta(s), esse(s), essa(s), aquele(s), aquela(s), isto, isso, and aquilo. identify a particular person or object and establish its location in relation to the speaker, the listener, or simply within the general context. They can tell us, for example, whether something is close or distant, in either space or time. […]
A Lenda do Galo de Barcelos (Animated!)
The Legend of the Rooster of Barcelos (Animated!)
Wayne, the talented animator and good friend of Practice Portuguese, is back at it again with this reimagining of one of our podcast episodes, based on a famous Portuguese tale.
Pizza Na Hora Está a Contratar!
Pizza on Time is Hiring!
Márcio o Brasileiro calls in once again to everyone’s favourite Portuguese pizzeria, but this time to ask the owner for a job. Will they be able to overcome their cultural differences and work together? Have a listen and find out in this 3rd episode of Pizza Na Hora!
The Preposition "Em"
In The preposition is usually a bit easier to understand compared to others. Although there are multiple uses, em most commonly refers to being “in” something, either physically or conceptually: Other Meanings Em can also have other meanings, such as about, on, and at.