< Portuguese Grammar

articles o & a

In Portuguese, the article the is used more often than in English.

It’s commonly placed before someone’s name,

o Jorge
a Marisa

as well as

In general, most nouns (things) are also preceded by the.

masculine: o barco (the boat)

feminine: a feira (the fair)

masculine: Você gostou do carro? (Did you like the car?)

feminine: Vamos para a casa da Clara. (Let's go to Clara's house.)

The gender of the: o or a, depends on the subject.
Masculine nouns usually end in o, feminine in a.
There are many exceptions. Here are the most common:

irregular: o programa (the program)

irregular: o cinema (the cinema)

irregular: o clima (the cimate)

irregular: o problema (the problem)

irregular: o sofa (the sofa)

irregular: o dia (the day)

irregular: o cara (the dude, man)

ambiguous: a carne (the meat)

ambiguous: a colher (the spoon)

ambiguous: a chave (the key)

ambiguous: a foto (the photo)

ambiguous: a noite (the night)

ambiguous: a vez (the time, turn)

ambiguous: o leite (the milk)