Portuguese · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 11
Quantos anos você tem?How old are you?
Numbers 11 to 100 (onze, vinte, cem) plus mil and zero. For age, Portuguese uses "ter" (to have), not "ser": Tenho vinte anos ("I have twenty years"), never "sou vinte". The question is Quantos anos você tem? New vocabulary: onze, vinte, cem, mil, zero, ano, quantos, primeiro, último, vez.
Dialogue
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
Sou ou tenho?— sou or tenho?
- LucasMike, quantos anos você tem?Mike, how old are you?
- MikeEu sou vinte e um.I'm twenty-one. (slip: age uses ter, not ser — say "Tenho vinte e um anos")
- LucasCom a idade a gente usa "ter": você tem vinte e um anos.With age we use "ter": você tem vinte e um anos (you have twenty-one years).
- MikeAh, tenho vinte e um anos. E você?Ah, I am twenty-one. And you?
- LucasTenho dezenove anos.I'm nineteen.
Dialogue
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
As idades da família— The Family Ages
- BiaLucas, quantos anos tem sua irmã?Lucas, how old is your sister?
- LucasMinha irmã Júlia tem vinte e três anos. É a primeira.My sister Júlia is twenty-three. She is the first (oldest).
- BiaE seu irmão mais novo?And your younger brother?
- LucasO Téo tem catorze anos. É o último.Téo is fourteen. He is the last (youngest).
Vocabulary
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
- onze
numeraleleven
- vinte
numeraltwenty
- cem
numeralhundred
- mil
numeralthousand
- zero
numeralzero
- ano
n.m.year (m)
- quantos
adjectivehow many
- primeiro
adjectivefirst
- último
adjectivelast
- vez
n.f.time, occasion (f)
Grammar
i
Study this section in the Bookverse app
- Spaced repetition schedules your reviews
- Practice tasks with pass tracking
- A teacher on every study screen
- Progress saved across chapters and devices — laptop and phone
- Audio playback for dialogues and words
- Speaking practice with feedback
- Search dictionaries and chat with AI, all inside the app
Sign up and start studying in the Bookverse app.
You will be asked to register first.
Age with "ter"
Explanation
In Portuguese, age is said with "ter" (not "ser"): you "have" years. Tenho vinte anos (I am twenty). Quantos anos você tem? — Tenho dezenove. The classic English mistake is "sou vinte" (I am twenty): in Portuguese that would mean "I am number twenty". Always say tenho + number + anos. About the numbers: 11-15 are their own words (onze, doze, treze, catorze, quinze); 16-19 use "deze-" (dezesseis, dezessete); from 21 on, use "e": vinte e um. The tens: vinte, trinta, quarenta… cem is 100.
Examples
- Quantos anos você tem? — Tenho vinte anos.How old are you? — I am twenty.
- Minha avó tem cem anos.My grandmother is a hundred years old.
- É a primeira vez.It's the first time.
- Meu número é dois, zero, zero, um.My number is two, zero, zero, one.
Want to actually learn this — with audio, spaced repetition and progress tracking?
Study in the app →