Portuguese · CEFR Band 1 (A1) · Chapter 33
Como você vai?How do you get there?
Transport vocabulary: o ônibus, o trem, o carro, a moto, a bicicleta, o avião, o metrô, a pé, pegar, a estação. Key grammar: to say by what means you go, use "de" + the transport, WITHOUT an article: "de ônibus", "de trem", "de carro", "de metrô". The pattern is ir + para/a + place + de + means: "Eu vou para o trabalho de ônibus" (I go to work by bus). Walking has an exception: "a pé" (with "a", not "de"). You can also "pegar o ônibus / o trem" (take the bus/train, with the article). English says "by bus"; English speakers look for "by" and use "por" — but "por" marks a path or agent ("passar POR aqui" = to pass through here), not the means of transport: "Vou por ônibus" ✗ → "Vou de ônibus" ✓. Sound corner: "ônibus", "avião" (nasal -ão), "estação" (-ção).
Dialogue
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De ônibus ou "por" ônibus?— De bus or "por" bus?
- LucasMike, como você vai para a faculdade?Mike, how do you get to college?
- MikeEu vou por ônibus.I go by bus. (slip: the means is "de", not "por")
- LucasO meio é "de", Mike. "por" é caminho: "passo por aqui". Diz "de ônibus".The means is "de", Mike. "por" is a path: "passo por aqui" (I pass through here). Say "de ônibus".
- MikeAh! Eu vou para a faculdade de ônibus. Às vezes de metrô.Ah! I go to college by bus. Sometimes by subway.
- LucasIsso! Ou "pego o ônibus" — aí com artigo. E se for perto?That's it! Or "pego o ônibus" — that one with the article. And if it is near?
- MikeSe for perto, eu vou a pé.If it is near, I walk.
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Como chegar à praia— How to get to the beach
- BiaAmanhã vamos à praia. Como a gente vai?Tomorrow we go to the beach. How do we get there?
- LucasA gente vai de metrô até o centro e depois de ônibus.We take the subway to downtown and then the bus.
- BiaPor que não vamos de carro?Why do we not go by car?
- LucasNo fim de semana o trânsito é horrível. De metrô é mais rápido.On the weekend the traffic is terrible. The subway is faster.
- BiaBoa. E da praia até o hotel a gente vai a pé, né?Good. And from the beach to the hotel we walk, right?
- LucasIsso, é pertinho. Melhor ainda a pé.Right, it is very close. Even better on foot.
Vocabulary
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- o ônibus
n.m.bus
- o trem
n.m.train
- o carro
n.m.car
- a moto
n.f.motorbike
- a bicicleta
n.f.bicycle
- o avião
n.m.aeroplane
- o metrô
n.m.subway, metro
- a pé
adverbon foot
- pegar
verbto take, catch (transport)
- a estação
n.f.station
Grammar
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Going "de" bus: the means of transport
Explanation
To say what means you travel by, Portuguese uses the preposition "de" right before the transport, WITHOUT an article: "de ônibus", "de trem", "de carro", "de moto", "de bicicleta", "de avião", "de metrô". The pattern is: ir + para (or a) + the place + de + the means: "Eu vou para o trabalho de ônibus" (I go to work by bus), "Ela volta para casa de trem" (she goes home by train), "Nós vamos ao mercado de carro" (we go to the market by car). Only walking breaks the rule: there it is "a pé" (with "a", not "de") — "A escola é perto, então vou a pé" (the school is near, so I walk). Another common way is the verb "pegar" WITH the article: "pego o ônibus das oito" (I take the eight o'clock bus), "pegue o trem na estação" (catch the train at the station). The classic mistake: English says "by bus", so English speakers look for a "by" and pick "por". But "por" in Portuguese is a path or agent — "passo POR aqui" (I pass through here), "feito POR ela" (made by her) — never the vehicle. So "Vou por ônibus" ✗ is wrong; the correct form is "Vou de ônibus" ✓ (or "Pego o ônibus").
Examples
- Eu vou para o trabalho de ônibus.I go to work by bus.
- Ela volta para casa de trem.She goes home by train.
- Nós vamos ao mercado de carro.We go to the market by car.
- A escola é perto, então vou a pé.The school is near, so I walk.
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