Latest Posts » Brazilian Portuguese, by Semantica

Connecting the Dots 🔴⚪️🔵

November 25, 2025 By James Hall

Prepositions, Verbs, and the Infinite Web of Brazilian Portuguese You may have noticed that certain verbs in Portuguese don’t like to go it alone. They need a little something between themselves and the next verb in the sentence — a connector. A preposition. And they are very choosy about which one. Let’s call these what…

(1) Portuguese Learning Tips

Expressions “X a Y”

March 15, 2025March 20, 2025 By James Hall

Have you noticed how many Brazilian Portuguese expressions are built on this format?… “X a Y” ➜ “nada a ver” (nothing to see 🙈)… These are all great to use and EASY to learn! I’m pretty sure you can invent your own as long as you keep it simple 😎. Here are the most common/useful…

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

Queria in Portuguese

February 1, 2025May 6, 2025 By James Hall

In english we say, I wanted to this and that… all_the_time. To say the same thing in portuguese it’s tempting to say something like,… Eu estava querendo x & y…. But this is very clunky, isn’t it? Brazilians will use the imperfect past form of QUERER to express this. Like this: Eu queria fazer uma…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

O que aconteceu? ➜ “What happened?” in Portuguese 😮

October 4, 2024May 6, 2025 By James Hall

There are three ways that Brazilians ask, “what happened?”: (1) O que aconteceu?; (2) O que foi?; (3) O que houve? (verb HAVER). And… they often mix these together! Ordered by popularity they are: O que aconteceu? You’ll often hear it said like this: O que é que aconteceu. = literally: What is (it) that…

(4) Advanced Portuguese

TO THINK in Portuguese

July 26, 2024June 27, 2025 By James Hall

It’s confusing to say TO THINK in Portuguese. That’s mostly because there are two verbs for it: PENSAR & ACHAR. Let’s clear up the… confusion with examples. ACHAR or PENSAR? :: TO THINK in Portuguese Most books will tell you that it’s Ok to use either. That may be grammatically correct, but it does not…

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

PARA MIM versus PARA EU

June 3, 2024February 18, 2025 By James Hall

My mom still gets mad when I get “I” and “me” mixed up. It still happens too often, giving her joy every time. It’s… the same thing in Portuguese. The big confusion is whether to say para mim or, para eu. Fortunately, there is a very simple trick to getting these right. Once you know…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

Talheres

June 3, 2024May 8, 2025 By James Hall

» From our online Portuguese course. Por que que o garfo é no masculino se ele claramente é uma mulher? Seios cintura quadril. E… por que é que a faca é no feminino se ela claramente é um homem? E eles são um casal! E diferente de quem acha que a colher… É a filha…

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To SER or not to ser.

April 19, 2024January 8, 2025 By James Hall

One of the biggest deals to learn as a beginner is the difference between SER and ESTAR. Let’s forget the differences between the two… and just look at ser, and when/how to use it. SER: to be SER is really just to talk about the hard facts. Nothing at all temporal or changing. But don’t…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

lá, ali, aí – saying THERE in Portuguese

April 17, 2024May 8, 2025 By James Hall

Years of study and practice and I finally know how to say “there”, in Portuguese 🤠. I never thought that something so simple could… become so complicated. I’m going to show you this with out the frustrating grammar-talk that most books will throw at you just to learn how to choose the right “there” !

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

Pronouncing the “lh”

April 16, 2024May 8, 2025 By James Hall

The LH in the middle of a word is one of the trickiest pronunciations. Do this: DE-emphasize the ‘L’. Say trabaLYar, not trabayar. Feel yourself saying the L. But don’t dwell on it. As soon as you feel the L, move on!

(2) Beginning Portuguese

A gente » The conversational “we”

April 10, 2024May 8, 2025 By James Hall

One of the many curiosities about the Portuguese language is the fact that there are TWO ways to say “we.” “A gente” can be… used almost interchangeably with “nós.” A gente (we) is a colloquial form and is usually used in the spoken language instead of nós (we). Even though it means we, it’s a…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

Portuguese Preposition de

April 5, 2024July 4, 2025 By James Hall

The Portuguese preposition DE shows up in some unexpected places. DE does the heavy lifting of tying words together and shifting meanings. The best… way to get up-to-speed on the superpowers of “de” are by example and CONTEXT🧑🏼‍🔬.

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

Acabar in Portuguese vs. Acabar + de

February 27, 2024May 8, 2025 By James Hall

We’ve written about ACABAR de before — because it’s such a useful combination. When you place a de after acabar, it takes on the… meaning of, to have just. ACABAR in Portuguese by itself means: to end, to end-up, to finish. Everyone gets these mixed-up (confundida) ~ That DE makes all the difference! Use ACABAR…

(4) Advanced Portuguese

the Preterit Indicative of irregular verbs

February 15, 2024November 21, 2024 By James Hall

The Preterit Indicative (often called the “simple past”) is by-far, the most important past-tense to know. Let’s look at the most common irregular verbs… in this tense: fazer, ter, ir, ser, estar, querer & dizer. There are many more irregulars, but most of them will follow similar patterns to these common examples presented here.

(2) Beginning Portuguese

COMEÇAR a / PARAR de

December 25, 2023October 16, 2025 By James Hall

What’s so special about the verbs PARAR & COMEÇAR? For starters you’ve probably noticed that you always have to treat these verbs a little… differently. For example, you can’t say “I stopped eating sugar” like this: eu parei comer açucar (NÃO!) — you need to include a de like this: Eu parei de comer açucar….

(4) Advanced Portuguese

Mastering Ficar in Brazilian Portuguese

July 31, 2023January 16, 2025 By James Hall

I’ve posted about FICAR before – Ficar Grammar & Portuguese Verb Ficar. FICAR is a big deal and using it correctly can be powerful. Italians have a big problem with this verb because apparently, it means to fuck in Italian. That’s their problem, not yours. Actually, Brazilians do use FICAR to talk about casual hook-ups…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

the Meaning of PODER + better ways to say the same thing.

June 20, 2023February 10, 2025 By James Hall

The meaning of PODER in Portuguese is similar to other verbs CONSEGUIR, DAR, and TER. While PODER is most common, knowing how to use… others will give you super-powers. This post will show you the best, most common ways all of these verbs are used to say that something is possible or, can be done.

(4) Advanced Portuguese

Mesmo in Portuguese

May 26, 2023May 8, 2025 By James Hall

One of the first things you’ll notice in Brazil is the word “mesmo.” You’ll hear it everywhwre! It has a few common uses: as… “really” to emphasize, as “even though” triggering the subjunctive, and as “the same”. This post will show how to use ” mesmo”, and when it needs to become “mesmA” 😉

(2) Beginning Portuguese

Muito or Muita?

May 8, 2023May 8, 2025 By James Hall

Is it Muito or Muita? In Portuguese, when talking about degree or intensity, always use “muito.” It’s the DEFAULT. For quantities you have to… match the the subject. Below, I’ll help you decide when the situation is talking about degree/intensity, or quantity. When it’s not clear, ask yourself: is this about the quantity of something?

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

alguma coisa : Something in Portuguese

April 4, 2023May 8, 2025 By James Hall

In Portuguese, expressing something, nothing, and anything can be confusing 😵‍💫. In this post I will show you how to navigate the phrases and… words in-context that Brazilians use daily to express these “indefinite pronouns”.

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

PARECER in Portuguese

March 1, 2023February 10, 2025 By James Hall

How would you say something like, You seem to be doing great or, You look tired -? How about, looking good or, seems like… a good option -? I remember always getting stuck when trying to express – to seem, to appear. Then I discovered two things: 1- You don’t have to be so literal…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

Brazilian Gringos (parte 1)

February 13, 2023May 8, 2025 By James Hall

“Gringo” is not a bad word in Brazil. It’s used as a kind label for any foreigner. DO NOT be offended when someone calls… you a gringo! In these next two dialogs we’ll learn some very useful new vocabulário. Whenever you’re getting new vocab in a story with rich context, it’s supremely memorable!

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

Physical descriptions in Portuguese

February 13, 2023May 20, 2025 By Raquel Semantica

It seemed so strange to me to first hear people being referred to as: the white guy, that fat girl, the tall one. Maybe… we’re too socially correct in the US or just more sensitive (cautious?) — but we don’t casually call people by their physical attributes, especially if it’s potentially unflattering or offensive. But…

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

FALTAR in Portuguese

February 8, 2023May 8, 2025 By James Hall

Faltar in Portuguese is one of those insanely useful verbs. You can say something is “em falta” to describe something that’s lacking or missing… ➔ A cidade está em falta de água. (The city is lacking water.)

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

The Portuguese “what” ➜ COMO?

February 6, 2023March 10, 2025 By James Hall

Saying “what,” used to trip me up. There are different ways to say it: “como,” “oi,” or “o quê.” Which is the right… one to use and when & why?

(2) Beginning Portuguese

Mastering the Phrase ‘Um ao Outro’ in Portuguese (10 examples)

January 9, 2023November 25, 2024 By James Hall

The phrase “Um ao Outro” in Portuguese can be translated as “each other” or “one another.” In this post you’ll see exactly how it’s… commonly used, and how to deal with different genders and variations. “Um ao Outro” is crucial for expressing reciprocal actions or relationships in Portuguese, allowing for more accurate and natural communication.”

(4) Advanced Portuguese

Tomar in Portuguese

December 27, 2022May 8, 2025 By James Hall

The Portuguese verb “tomar” can be confusing because it encompasses the meanings of “to take,” “to drink,” and “to consume.” Similar to “beber,” Brazilians… specifically use “tomar” when something becomes part of their being or changes them internally. For instance, they “take” breakfast and coffee, but not lunch or dinner. Let me explain…

(3) Intermediate Portuguese

Hacking Portuguese Participles

November 18, 2022May 8, 2025 By James Hall

Many Portuguese learners get tripped-up with the past tense. But there are some hacks that can get you speaking quickly. One of them is… learning to use Portuguese participles. The past participle is just a verb conjugation that describes something that is over and done: written, said, cooked, closed etc. Learning the Portuguese participles is…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

mais in Portuguese

June 20, 2022May 8, 2025 By James Hall

Let’s take a look at the different uses of ‘mais’ in Portuguese. It can compare one thing to another or simply mean ‘most’ or… ‘more.’ You can use it to describe objects, or you can talk about the quantity of something, but using it correctly can be a challenge. As usual, in-context examples quickly bring this important word into focus.

(2) Beginning Portuguese

Mal posso esperar!

June 1, 2022May 15, 2025 By James Hall

I can hardly wait! I found it really difficult to learn how to say things like, ‘barely’, ‘hardly’, and ‘scarcely’ — staples of english… communication 😉 I would always come up with, for example: ‘não posso esperar’ — which translates quite literally to ‘I am unable to wait’ To express the true meaning of hardly…

(2) Beginning Portuguese

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