These brothers take game night very seriously… While they play, you can practice differentiating the verbs saber vs. conhecer.
Duelo De Irmãos
Brother's Duel
Porque Não Vieste à Festa?
Why Didn't You Come To The Party?
João is irritated that Ana keeps skipping out on their plans. Practice differentiating between the verbs ver and vir throughout the dialogue.
Dar Uma Mãozinha
Lend A Little Hand
Helena decides to organize her storage closet. Notice how the verb “dar” is used in a variety of different expressions throughout the dialogue.
How to Use the Verb Andar
The simplest translation for the Portuguese verb andar is “to walk”, but the fun doesn’t stop there! Andar can take on many different meanings, depending on the context. As opposed to , which is pretty straightforward, refers more to the general act of moving, acting, or changing places. It can indicate that an action is […]
Segredo Desvendado
Secret Unveiled
In today’s European Portuguese Listening Practice, a brother confronts his sister about an exciting job offer she has been keeping a secret. Why has she been trying to hide it from everyone? 🚀 Explore the difference between the verbs dizer, falar, and contar.
Poder vs. Conseguir
Some Portuguese verbs have such similar meanings that it can be quite confusing for learners to know which to use in different contexts. Two of these tricky verbs are and . In this Learning Note, we’ll cover how to distinguish between poder vs. conseguir.
Passeio De Domingo
Sunday Walk
A couple makes the best of a sunny day by going for a walk on the beach. Verbs practice: irregular -ir verbs in the present tense
Pôr Tudo em Pratos Limpos
Setting The Record Straight (Putting Everything On Clean Plates)
Adriana tells Nuno about how her last relationship ended. Verbs practice: irregular verbs in the simple past
Passa-me o Berbequim
Hand Me The Drill
Explore the many different uses of the verb “passar” in this dialogue between Eurico and Vanessa.
Segredo Desvendado
Secret Revealed
Explore the difference between the verbs dizer, falar, and contar in this dialogue between a brother and sister.
Coisas Do Destino
Things Of Fate
Jorge tells Soraia about meeting up with an old “friend” over the weekend. Notice the use of many regular and irregular verbs in the simple past tense.
Eu Só Queria Tomar o Pequeno-Almoço
I Just Wanted To Have Breakfast
Diogo is in a bad mood and just wants some breakfast. Unfortunately, everywhere he goes seems to be closed. Listen for regular -ir verbs in the present tense throughout the story, including abrir, desistir, vestir, and decidir. Remember, they’re conjugated with almost the same endings as regular -er verbs!
A Família do Adriano
Adriano's Family
Adriano tells us about each member of his family. Toggle on the Translate button and explore the differences between the verbs ser and estar, the verbs that mean “to be”. For this episode, let’s focus more on exploring the language, instead of comprehending what you hear. Listen once and then go through line by line, […]
Palavras Opostas
Opposite Words
Leonor has a test on opposite words tomorrow, so she asks her father to help her study while they walk home from school. Throughout their practice, you’ll learn lots of Portuguese adjectives, plus many examples of when to use ser vs. estar.
The Most Common Portuguese Verbs
With so much to learn about the European Portuguese language, it helps to consider what you’ll actually use most frequently. Let’s start off with the top 10 most common Portuguese verbs!
How to Use the Verb Ficar
The verb is a very common, and important, Portuguese verb. Ficar is sort of like a Swiss army knife, as it can take on many meanings… but you also have to be careful with it! In most cases, this verb means to be, to stay, to become, or to keep. It implies that something happened or will […]
How to Talk About Likes and Dislikes in Portuguese
I like… The most important verb to learn when talking about likes and dislikes in Portuguese is . Let’s start with a simple example: It’s important to remember that the preposition goes along with the verb gostar. Adding de may seem strange at first to English speakers because we don’t use a preposition in this context. […]
Falar, Dizer, and Contar
This guide will focus on the differences between the Portuguese verbs falar, dizer, and contar. The meanings of these words are actually very similar because they all relate to speaking or communicating information. In fact, they’re often considered synonyms and can be used interchangeably in certain contexts. However, it’s important to understand the differences as you […]
Verb Phrases & Clitic Pronouns
In our unit on clitic object pronouns in Portuguese, we discussed where to place clitics within a sentence. More specifically, we talked about whether the clitic goes before the verb, after the verb, or in the middle of the verb. When auxiliary verbs get involved, there are now 2 verbs, so the rules change a […]
O Fim De Semana Da Joana
Joana's Weekend
Joana had a wonderful weekend! Listen for the simple past tense as she describes all the fun she had with her family.
Future Subjunctive
As previously mentioned, the allows us to talk about the conditions that must be met in order for a potential future action to occur, (i.e. “If this goes well, I will do that” or “When we get home, I will do that”). This tense appears in subordinate adverbial clauses (i.e. clauses which function like an […]
Imperfect Subjunctive
Another tense that makes up part of the conjuntivo is the . You learned about the pretérito imperfeito do indicativo, which references past events that were ongoing. In the conjuntivo, however, the imperfect refers to: past or future wishes and desires; something purely hypothetical in the past or future: i.e. imagining “what could have been” […]
Present Subjunctive
Presente do Conjuntivo As one of the tenses that makes up part of the conjuntivo (subjunctive) mood, the lets you talk about something that may or may not happen, but that is within the realm of possibility. This includes hopes, fears, doubts, and other hypotheticals. It tends to be paired with the presente do indicativo, […]
The Subjunctive Mood in Portuguese (Conjuntivo)
Conjuntivo: What is it? What in English is called the subjunctive mood, in European Portuguese is named . While the mood refers to actions that are certain or real, the conjuntivo, in contrast, indicates something possible, desired, hypothetical, or even unreal. It conveys the idea of uncertainty, doubt, or hope. It is often found in […]