Absolute beginners coursePortuguese words

*Welcome to our Brazilian Portuguese course for beginners!* *Hi guys!* Are you ready to start your journey to master Brazilian Portuguese? This course will help you understand the basics. You'll learn lots of new words, some basic phrases, as well as pronouns, the present simple, articles and the verb to be. *Are you ready?*

*Now let us show you how to greet in Portuguese and some basic phrases!* Due to the high number of Portuguese-speaking countries, there are also more varieties of the language. In Brazil, the speakers most commonly use "Oi", however, in Portugal and African portuguese-speaking countries "Olá" is more frequent. When it comes to *Good day*, *Good afternoon* and *Good evening*, it is very consistent. You use "Bom dia" in the morning till approximately 1 PM, "Boa tarde" then more or less until the sun goes down, and "Boa noite" for the rest of the day. All of them might be also used as a farewell when you are leaving having the same meaning as *Have a nice day/afternoon/night*.

*Being polite* Similarly to other languages, it is very important to know how to say *Thank you* and *Please*. Beware, that when using "Obrigado" you might need to change the suffix if you are a woman to -a: "Obrigada"

*Let's take a look at genders.* Nouns can be either masculine, usually ending with *-o*, or feminine, ending with *-a*. "um menino" "uma menina" The indefinite articles "um" for masculine and / "uma" for feminine, are similar in use to *a* / *an* in English and their form depends on gender. In masculine plural, they change to "uns" and in feminine plural to "umas". With plurals, you also have to add *s* suffix to the end of the noun, same as in English. However, there are some more rules, but we will check those later.

*Now let's see the articles in more detail!* In Portuguese, it is obligatory to use either an indefinite article or a definite article "o" for masculine and "a" for feminine. "um menino" or "o menino" "uma menina" or "a menina" The use of the definite article is again similar to the English definite article *the* but unlike in English, it is obligatory even in almost all plural forms: "os" and "as". Don't forget to add "s" suffix to the end of all the nouns in plural. "os meninos" "as meninas"

Let's also have a look at some more complicated *phrases that might come in handy* on a daily basis!

*And now adjectives!* In Portuguese, the adjectives have to have the same ending as the noun to which they relate. In most cases, they are placed behind the noun. If you have a masculine verb in singular, the adjective usually has to end in *o*, feminine singular in *a*, masculine plural in *os* and feminine plural in *as*: "o menino bonito" "a menina bonita" "os meninos bonitos" "as meninas bonitas"

*Personal pronouns and regular verbs in Portuguese* In Brazilian Portuguese, we have 4 forms of each verb in present simple depending on the person we are speaking about. Verbs can be divided into 3 groups, depending on what is the ending of the basic form. The options are: a) verbs ending in *ar*, b) verbs ending in *er*, c) verbs ending with *ir*. First, let's have a look at the *ar* group and verb "falar" - to speak, which is a good example of how to change regular verbs in the *ar* group. I speak "eu falo" you (singular) speak "você fala", he speaks "ele fala" and she speaks "ela fala" we speak "nós falamos" you (plural) speak "vocês falam", they (men) speak "eles falam" and they (women) speak "elas falam" Personal pronouns can be omitted and start with small letter unless they are at the beginning of a sentence.

*I like you* When it comes to the verb to like, in Portuguese, we will use the verb "gostar". This verb is regular and we will change it the same way we change the other regular verbs that end in *ar*. *Beware*, as there is one thing we can't forget - this verb usually comes with the preposition *de* that could be translated as *of* in English. We will use the correct form of "gostar", then preposition "de" (with article, if necessary) and then *the thing we like*: "Eu gosto de cachorros." "Ela gosta de chocolate."

*Verbs ending in -ER* Now, let's have a look at the *er* group and verb "beber" - to drink, which is, again, a good example of how to change regular verbs in the *er* group. I drink "eu bebo" you (singular) drink "você bebe", he drinks "ele bebe" and she drinks "ela bebe" we drink "nós bebemos" you (plural) drink "vocês bebem", they (men) drink "eles bebem" and they (women) drink "elas bebem"

*Verbs ending in -IR* The last group, *ir* is the most irregular and therefore, there are not as many regular verbs we could check out. However, the regular ones have the same endings as the *er* group, except for 1st person plural. Let's see the verb "abrir" - to open. I open "eu abro" you (singular) open "você abre", he opens "ele abre" and she opens "ela abre" we open "nós abrimos" you (plural) open "vocês abrem", they (men) open "eles abrem" and they (women) open "elas abrem"

*Negative* To make a negative in Brazilian Portuguese, we always place "não" right in front of the verb and separate it by a space. It cannot be in any other position in the sentence. For example: *Não sei.* *Ele não está em casa.*

*Possessive pronouns* Possessive pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese have the same form for both dependent and independent possessives (eg. *my* and *mine* in English). First, we need to choose the correct possessive pronoun according to the person, who owns the object, same as in English. Then, the possessive pronoun's form and endings change in gender and number, depending on the noun they are connected to (the thing we own): *my/mine* = "meu" for masculine singular and "meus" for plural, "minha" for feminine singular and "minhas" for plural *your/yours (singular) /his/her/hers* = "seu, seus, sua, suas" *our/ours* = "nosso, nossos, nossa, nossas" * your/yours (plural)* = "vosso, vossos, vossa, vossas" *their/theirs* = "seu, seus, sua, suas" The pronouns "seu, seus, sua, suas" are used for all the forms listed above and we need context to know, how to exactly translate its meaning.

*Possessives for 3rd person* The possessive pronoun is usually in front of the noun. In 3rd person singular or plural (and *only* there) we can also use "dele, deles, dela, delas" and in that case the possessive pronoun goes behind the noun. Here, we know immediately the owner of the object, unlike with *seu, seus, sua, suas* "Sua casa" or "a casa dele" are both correct.

*Possessives in combination with a noun* When we want to say that an object is someone's and name them specifically, insteaf of just using a possessive pronoun, we will say - the *object*, then verb to be - *ser* (usually in the form *é*) then preposition *de* (which means *of*) and the last is the *name or noun* with a definite article. "O livro é da Teresa." "A casa é do Antônio."

*Now, let's have a look at the verb TO BE * In Portuguese, there are basically 4 verbs that express *to be*, but they are used in different contexts. The verbs are "ser", "estar", "haver" and "ficar". The verb "ser" is used for the characteristics, that don't change, such as personality traits, origin, material and also names, days of the week, and time. This verb is irregular: I am "Eu sou" you are "Você/ele/ela é" we "Nós somos" you/they "Vocês/eles/elas são"

*The verb ESTAR* On the other hand, the verb "estar" is used for things that might change, such as non-permanent location, clothes, position or weather. It is also irregular: "Eu estou" "Você/ele/ela está" "Nós estamos" "Vocês/eles/elas estão"

*FICAR* and *HAVER* The verb "ficar" is mostly used for a permanent location or the emotional state and it is *regular* and therefore changed as other regular verbs that ned in *ar*. However, it can be used in many different contexts where it would change the meaning to e.g. *to stay, cost, stop, fit* and more. The verb "haver" is mostly used in the context of existing, in sentences, where you would normally use the *There is/are...* in English. It is irregular, however, only the 3rd person singular form is used in all the tenses. In the present tense, it is "há". *The verb "haver" always has to be at the very beginning of the sentence.*

*Two verb combos* In Portuguese, we can also form sentences using more than one verb! We will use *the first verb in the person we need* and *the other one will stay in its basic form*, ending in *ar*, *er* or *ir*. "Eu quero falar português." Beware that *some verbs need to be connected with a specific preposition*, that is typically given with the first verb, such as verb *gostar*, that always comes with the preposition *de*. "Eu gosto de falar português."

*So this is it!* Now you know the very basics of the Portuguese language and you are ready to step up! See the following course - Basic Portuguese! *Obrigado por seu trabalho e até a próxima!*