Portuguese · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 4
Sou estudanteI'm a student
Portuguese's big challenge for an English speaker arrives: GENDER. Every noun is masculine or feminine, and the article follows — o/um (m), a/uma (f). The ending gives hints (-o usually masculine, -a feminine), with exceptions (o homem, a mulher), so learn each word WITH its article. And, as in Spanish, after ser the profession goes WITHOUT an article: Sou estudante, not "sou um estudante". Mike, of course, gets the gender of the article wrong.
Dialogue
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E você, Bia?— And you, Bia?
- LucasSou estudante. E você, Bia?I'm a student. And you, Bia?
- BiaSou estudante. Ela é professora.I'm a student. She is a teacher.
- LucasÉ médica?Is she a doctor?
- BiaNão, é professora. Ele é médico.No, she's a teacher. He is a doctor.
Dialogue
i
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Mike e o artigo errado— Mike and the Wrong Article
- LucasMike, o que é?Mike, what is it?
- MikeÉ um mulher.It's um mulher. (wrong: mulher is feminine, so uma mulher)
- BiaMike, "uma mulher"!Mike, "uma mulher"! (the article agrees with the noun — mulher is feminine)
- MikeAh! Uma mulher. Obrigado!Ah! A woman. Thank you!
Vocabulary
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- estudante
nounstudent
- professor/a
nounteacher
- médico/a
noundoctor
- trabalho (m)
nounjob, work
- homem (m)
nounman
- mulher (f)
nounwoman
- ele
pronounhe
- ela
pronounshe
- um
art.a, an (m)
- uma
art.a, an (f)
- o / a
art.the (m / f)
Grammar
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Gender and the articles
Explanation
In Portuguese, EVERY noun has a gender: masculine or feminine — people and things. The article agrees: o/um for masculine, a/uma for feminine. The ending usually warns you: -o normally masculine (o trabalho, um médico), -a normally feminine (a pessoa, uma amiga). But there are exceptions (o homem ends in a consonant and is masculine; a mulher ends in -er and is feminine), so the best habit is to learn each word TOGETHER with its article: not "cidade", but "a cidade".
Examples
- o trabalho, um médico (masculino)the job, a doctor (masculine)
- a pessoa, uma amiga (feminino)the person, a friend (feminine)
- É um homem. É uma mulher.He is a man. She is a woman.
- a mulher (exceção: -er, mas feminino)a mulher (exception: ends -er, yet feminine)
Grammar
i
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Professions take no article
Explanation
In English you say "I am A student". In Portuguese, after ser, the profession goes WITHOUT an article: Sou estudante, Ele é médico, Você é professora. No "um/uma" in front. (The article only returns if you add a description: "É um bom médico" — but that comes later.) It is one of the most common errors of English speakers: adding the extra "um" by calque. Drop the article and it sounds natural.
Examples
- Sou estudante. (não "sou um estudante")I'm a student. (not "sou um estudante")
- Ele é médico. Você é professora.He is a doctor. You are a teacher.
- Você é professora? — Não, sou estudante.Are you a teacher? — No, I'm a student.
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