Learn more about grammatical gender in Portuguese
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Intro |
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| Michael: Do adjectives have a gender in Portuguese? |
| Ana Clara: And does noun gender influence adjectives? |
| Michael: At PortuguesePod101.com, we hear these questions often. Imagine the following situation: Mark Lee and Clara Costa are walking past a car salon. Mark Lee says, |
| "I want a new car." |
| Mark Lee: Eu quero um carro novo. |
| Dialogue |
| Mark Lee: Eu quero um carro novo. |
| Clara Costa: E eu quero uma moto nova. |
| Michael: Once more with the English translation. |
| Mark Lee: Eu quero um carro novo. |
| Michael: "I want a new car." |
| Clara Costa: E eu quero uma moto nova. |
| Michael: "And I want a new bike." |
Lesson focus |
| Michael: Adjectives qualify nouns. In Portuguese, they will always have to agree with the noun gender, either feminine or masculine and the number, singular or plural, that they are qualifying. In this lesson, we'll learn about their gender. |
| In the conversation, Mark Lee says "I want a new car." |
| Ana Clara: Eu quero um carro novo. |
| Michael: In this case, the adjective "new", or in Portuguese: |
| Ana Clara: novo |
| Michael: agrees with the noun "car", or: |
| Ana Clara: carro |
| Michael: Therefore, the adjective is in the masculine singular form, the same as the noun it describes or qualifies. The adjective "new" in Portuguese is a "biform adjective", or: |
| Ana Clara: adjetivo biforme |
| Michael: That is, it has two forms, according to the gender, one for masculine, and another for feminine. When the masculine adjective ends in |
| Ana Clara: -O, |
| Michael: to form the feminine, we replace it with |
| Ana Clara: -A. |
| Michael: So, the feminine singular form of the adjective "new" in Portuguese will be: |
| Ana Clara: nova |
| Michael: as we heard in the conversation when Clara Costa says "And I want a new bike." |
| Ana Clara: E eu quero uma moto nova. |
| Michael: As the noun "bike", or: |
| Ana Clara: moto |
| Michael: is in the feminine singular form, so is the adjective that qualifies it. |
| When the adjective ends in |
| Ana Claraä: -ÊS, -OR |
| Michael: and |
| Ana Clara: -U, |
| Michael: in general, with some exceptions, we add an |
| Ana Clara: -A |
| Michael: at the end to obtain the feminine form. For example: |
| Ana Clara: português |
| Michael: "Portuguese" as a nationality, masculine singular form—and |
| Ana Clara: portuguesa |
| Michael: "Portuguese" also as a nationality, the feminine singular form. |
| Now, with an adjective that ends in |
| Ana Clara: -OR, |
| Michael: for example, "promising," its masculine singular form is |
| Ana Clara: promissor |
| Michael: and its feminine form will be: |
| Ana Clara: promissora |
| Michael: with an adjective that ends in |
| Ana Clara:-U, |
| Michael: such as the word “raw” or “uncooked,” whose masculine singular form is |
| Ana Clara: cru |
| Michael: Its feminine form will be: |
| Ana Clara: crua |
| Michael: When the adjective ends in |
| Ana Clara: -EU, |
| Michael: its feminine form will be obtained replacing the ending with |
| Ana Clara: -EIA, |
| Michael: as in "European", masculine singular form; |
| Ana Clara: europeu |
| Michael: and its feminine counterpart: |
| Ana Clara: europeia |
| Michael: These are some of the most common general rules to obtain the feminine form from the masculine form of an adjective. There are other possibilities and exceptions, but, in this class, we're focusing on the most common ones. |
| [Summary] |
| Michael: In this lesson, you've learned about the gender of adjectives (feminine or masculine) that will always agree with the noun that they describe or qualify. Now, let’s look at some examples. Our first example is: |
| Ana Clara: Gostei daquele vestido amarelo. |
| Michael: "I liked that yellow dress." In this case, the adjective "yellow" or, in Portuguese: |
| Ana Clara: amarelo |
| Michael: is in the masculine singular form, to agree with the noun, which is also in the masculine singular: "dress": |
| Ana Clara: vestido |
| Michael: Our next example is: |
| Ana Clara: A entrada é ali, naquela porta amarela. |
| Michael: "The entrance is there, in that yellow door." In this case, the adjective "yellow" is in the feminine singular form: |
| Ana Clara: amarela |
| Michael: to match the feminine singular noun "door", or: |
| Ana Clara: porta |
| Expansion |
| Michael: There are other adjectives that have only one form for both genders. They are called: |
| Ana Clara: adjetivos uniformes |
| Michael: "uniform adjectives." In general, with some exceptions, these adjectives end in |
| Ana Clara: -A, -E, -L, -M, -R, -S |
| Michael: and |
| Ana Clara: -Z. |
| Michael: Let's have a look at some examples: |
| Ana Clara: um filme excelente |
| Michael: "an excellent movie". In this case, the noun is in the masculine singular form: "movie", or in Portuguese: |
| Ana Clara: filme |
| Michael: As the adjective "excellent": |
| Ana Clara: excelente |
| Michael: is a "uniform adjective,” it will remain the same when used with a feminine singular noun, as in: |
| Ana Clara: uma casa excelente |
| Michael: "an excellent house". In this case, "house" or: |
| Ana Clara: casa |
| Michael: is a noun in the feminine singular form. |
| Let's see one more example: |
| Ana Clara: um menino feliz |
| Michael: "a happy boy". The adjective "happy" in Portuguese: |
| Ana Clara: feliz |
| Michael: is a uniform adjective that ends in |
| Ana Clara: -Z. |
| Michael: In the example, it is used with a masculine singular noun, "boy", or in Portuguese: |
| Ana Clara: menino |
| Michael: When used with a feminine singular noun, this adjective remains the same. For example: |
| Ana Clara: uma menina feliz |
| Michael: "a happy girl". |
| Practice Section |
| Michael: Let's review. Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then, repeat after Ana Clara focusing on pronunciation. |
| Do you remember how Mark Lee says "I want a new car?" |
| Ana Clara as Mark Lee: Eu quero um carro novo. |
| Michael: Listen again and repeat. |
| Ana Clara as Mark Lee: Eu quero um carro novo. |
| Ana Clara as Mark Lee: Eu quero um carro novo. |
| Michael: And do you remember how Clara Costa says "And I want a new bike?" |
| Ana Clara as Clara Costa: E eu quero uma moto nova. |
| Michael: Listen again and repeat. |
| Ana Clara as Clara Costa: E eu quero uma moto nova. |
| Ana Clara as Clara Costa: E eu quero uma moto nova. |
Outro |
| Michael: Do you have any more questions? We’re here to answer them! |
| Ana Clara: Até a próxima! |
| Michael: See you soon! |
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