Portuguese · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 31
A minha rotinaMy routine
Routine vocabulary: acordar, levantar-se, tomar banho, escovar os dentes, dormir, sempre, geralmente, às vezes, raramente, nunca. Key grammar: frequency adverbs go BEFORE the main verb or right after it: "Eu sempre acordo cedo" (I always wake up early) / "Eu acordo sempre cedo". With "nunca" (never), the simplest is to put it BEFORE the verb — and then you do NOT use "não": "Eu nunca durmo tarde" (I never sleep late). If "nunca" comes after the verb, Portuguese requires "não" before the verb (double negative): "Eu não durmo nunca tarde". English has no double negative ("I never…"), so English speakers put "nunca" after the verb without "não": "Eu durmo nunca tarde" ✗ → "Eu nunca durmo tarde" ✓. Sound corner: final vowels "-o" = "u", "-e" = "i" (cedo, tarde, sempre).
Dialogue
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Nunca antes ou depois?— "nunca" before or after?
- LucasMike, você acorda cedo no domingo?Mike, do you wake up early on Sunday?
- MikeNão! Eu acordo nunca cedo no domingo.No! I never wake up early on Sunday. (slip: "nunca" before the verb, or add "não")
- LucasFalta a negação, Mike. Diz "Eu nunca acordo cedo" — "nunca" antes do verbo.The negation is missing, Mike. Say "Eu nunca acordo cedo" — "nunca" before the verb.
- MikeAh! Eu nunca acordo cedo no domingo. Geralmente durmo até tarde.Ah! I never wake up early on Sunday. I usually sleep in.
- LucasIsso! Também podes dizer "Eu não acordo nunca cedo" — mas aí precisa do "não".That's it! You can also say "Eu não acordo nunca cedo" — but then it needs the "não".
- MikeEntendi. Uma negação sempre. Obrigado, Lucas!I get it. Always one negation. Thanks, Lucas!
Dialogue
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A rotina da Bia— Bia's routine
- LucasBia, a que horas você acorda?Bia, what time do you wake up?
- BiaGeralmente acordo às seis e meia e me levanto logo.I usually wake up at six thirty and get up straight away.
- LucasE toma banho de manhã ou à noite?And do you shower in the morning or at night?
- BiaSempre de manhã. À noite eu só escovo os dentes e durmo.Always in the morning. At night I just brush my teeth and sleep.
- LucasEu raramente acordo antes das oito. Sou preguiçoso!I rarely wake up before eight. I am lazy!
- BiaHaha! Aos domingos todo mundo dorme mais.Haha! On Sundays everyone sleeps more.
Vocabulary
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- acordar
verbto wake up
- levantar-se
verbto get up
- tomar banho
verbto shower, take a bath
- escovar os dentes
verbto brush your teeth
- dormir
verbto sleep
- sempre
adverbalways
- geralmente
adverbusually
- às vezes
adverbsometimes
- raramente
adverbrarely
- nunca
adverbnever
Grammar
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Frequency adverbs: sempre, às vezes, nunca
Explanation
To say how often you do something, use the adverbs: sempre (always), geralmente / normalmente (usually), às vezes (sometimes), raramente (rarely), nunca (never). The usual position is BEFORE the main verb or right after it: "Eu sempre acordo cedo" or "Eu acordo sempre cedo" — both sound fine. "Eu geralmente tomo banho de manhã" (I usually shower in the morning), "Às vezes durmo tarde" (sometimes I sleep late). The special case is "nunca". The easiest and most common way is to put it BEFORE the verb, and then you do NOT use "não": "Eu nunca durmo tarde" ✓. There is also the double-negative form: if "nunca" comes AFTER the verb, you must put "não" before it: "Eu não durmo nunca tarde" ✓. What cannot be missing is the negation. In English you say "I never sleep late" with a single negative, so English speakers tend to put "nunca" after the verb and forget the "não": "Eu durmo nunca tarde" ✗. Fix it with the simple form: "Eu nunca durmo tarde" ✓.
Examples
- Eu sempre acordo às sete.I always wake up at seven.
- Ela geralmente toma banho de manhã.She usually showers in the morning.
- Às vezes eu durmo tarde no sábado.Sometimes I sleep late on Saturday.
- Eu nunca durmo tarde durante a semana.I never sleep late during the week.
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