Lição 2

Department of Spanish & Portuguese, UW-Madison

Main Body

Lição 2

Learning Objectives – Objetivos da Lição

Lição 2 presents:

the neuter demonstratives,
regular verbs in the present indicative tense,
some basic contractions of definite articles and common prepositions,
the days of the week,
colors, and
introduces basic vocabulary that includes places, events, and other relevant words.

After completing this lesson, the student will be able to:

identify objects and their colors.
produce regular present tense verbs.
give more detailed responses to questions using prepositions.

Grammar – Gramática

Neuter Demonstratives – Os demonstrativos neutros

The neuter demonstratives are used when referring to some thing or idea not yet defined. They are pronouns, invariable in form, and do not modify nouns.

isto

O que é isto?

[this (near the speaker)]

[What is this?]

isso

Você sabe o que é isso?

[that (near the person being addressed)]

[Do you know what that is?]

aquilo

Aquilo não é bom.

[that (far from speaker and one addressed)]

[That is not good.]

2.1 Practice – Prática

2.1 A. Answer each question in the affirmative as in the example given. First, use the verb form alone to mean “yes,” then give the complete answer. Assume that your teacher is speaking to you. Observe in the following example:

Isto é uma mesa?
– É. Isso é uma mesa.

Isto é um lápis?
Aquilo é uma cadeira?
Isso é um cinzeiro?
Isto é um pedaço de giz?
Isso é uma caneta?
Aquilo é um quadro?

The present indicative – O presente do indicativo

By now you are aware that verb endings change when the subject of the verb varies. Given below are the endings for the regular verbs of the three Portuguese conjugations.

Infinitives which end in -AR are first conjugation. Those ending in -ER are second conjugation; and those ending in -IR are third conjugation. Before conjugating a verb, it is necessary to remove the infinitive ending. (As indicated in the preliminary lessons, the forms tu and vós will not be given except in the appendix of this book).

Study the following model verbs. Notice the endings put on the verb stem and the subject pronoun that goes with each particular form. Pay special attention to the three possible English translations.

-AR fal/ar

Singular

Plural

Eu falo	[I speak, I do speak, I am speaking]	Nós falamos	[We speak, We do speak, We are speaking]
Você fala	[You speak, You do speak, You are speaking]	Vocês falam	[You speak, You do speak, You are speaking]
Ele, ela fala	[He/she speaks, He/she does speak, He/she is speaking]	Eles, elas falam	[They speak, they do speak, they are speaking]

-ER com/er

Singular

Plural

Eu como	[I eat, I do eat, I am eating]	Nós comemos	[We eat, We do eat, We are eating]
Você come	[You eat, You do eat, You are eating]	Vocês comem	[You eat, You do eat, You are eating]
Ele, ela come	[He/she eats, He/she does eat, He/she is eating]	Eles, elas comem	[They eat, they do eat, they are eating]

-IR abr/ir

Singular

Plural

Eu abro	[I open, I do open, I am opening]	Nós abrimos	[We open, We do open, We are opening]
Você abre	[You open, You do open, You are opening]	Vocês abrem	[You open, You do open, You are opening]
Ele, ela abre	[He/she opens, He/she does open, He/she is opening]	Eles, elas abrem	[They open, they do open, they are opening]

*There are verbs in Portuguese which do not follow the pattern given above. These are called Irregular Verbs. The student must learn each person of such verbs. They will be conjugated either in the body of the lesson or in the vocabulary lists. Moreover, there are many verbs which are Irregular only in the first person singular of the present indicative. These irregular forms must be learned. They will be found in parentheses immediately after the infinitive in your vocabulary lists. Example: ouvir (ouço) – to hear; repetir (repito) – to repeat.

Some common prepositions – Algumas preposições comuns

a [to, at]
de [of, from]
em [in, on, at]
para [to, for]
com [with]
sem [without]
antes de [before]
depois de [after]
dentro de [inside]
fora de [outside]
longe de [far from]
perto de [near]

Contractions of common prepositions – Contrações de preposições comuns

The prepositions a, de, and em must combine with the definite articles as follows:

a + o = ao

ao amigo

[to the]

[to the friend]

a + os = aos

aos bares

[to the]

[to the bars]

a + a= à

à padaria

[to the]

[to the bakery]

a+ as = às

às médicas

[to the]

[to the (female) doctors]

de + o = do

longe do lago

[of the, from the]

[far from the lake]

de + os = dos

longe dos carros

[of the, from the]

[far from the cars]

de + a = da

a cor da gata

[of the, from the]

[the color of the cat]

de + as = das

a cor das paredes

[of the, from the]

[the color of the walls]

em + o = no

no cinema

[in the, on the, at the]

[at the movies]

em + os = nos

nos exercícios

[in the, on the, at the]

[in the exercises]

em + a =na

na cadeira

[in the, on the, at the]

[on the chair]

em + as = nas

nas caixas

[in the, on the, at the]

[in the boxes]

2.2. Practice – Prática

2.2 A.

The prepositions de and em may, but need not always, combine with the indefinite articles as follows:

de + um = dum

dum amigo

[of, from a]

[from a friend]

de + uma = duma

duma cidade

[of, from a]

[of a city]

de + uns = duns

duns lugares

[of, from some]

[from some places]

de + umas = dumas

dumas cores

[of, from some]

[of some colors]

em + um = num

num segundo

[in, on, at a]

[in a second]

em + uma = numa

numa loja

[in, on, at a]

[at a store]

em + uns = nuns

nuns jornais

[in, on, at some]

[in some newspapers]

em + umas = numas

numas frases

[in, on, at some]

[in some sentences]

*The preposition a does not contract with um or uma.

Some verbs that require prepositions – Alguns verbos que requerem preposições

There are numerous verbs in Portuguese which demand the use of a preposition after them. These verbs plus the prepositions they require are given in the vocabulary lists. In this lesson, for example, we find aprender a, gostar de, perguntar a, responder a, and apontar para.

The student must bear in mind that the prepositions a, em, and de must contract with definite and indefinite articles. Study the following:

Não pergunto nada à cantora.	[I don’t ask the* singer anything.]*
Gosto dos meses de verão.	[I like the* summer months.]*
O aluno responde ao professor.	[The student answers the* teacher.]*
Ela aponta para umas estrelas.	[She points at some* stars.]*

A verb following a preposition must be in the infinitive form.

Faça o favor de repetir.	[Please repeat.]
Estou aqui para ensinar.	[I’m here to teach.]
Gosto de ir ao cinema.	[I like going (to go) to the movies.]
O aluno aprende a falar português.	[The student learns to speak Portuguese.]

2.3 Practice – Prática

2.3 A. Answer each question in the affirmative, replacing the subject with a subject pronoun. Observe in the following example:

O arquiteto está perto da porta?
– Sim, ele está perto da porta.

O presidente está perto da janela?
A moça responde ao professor?
Você e eu estamos na praia?
Paulo e Maria gostam da camiseta amarela?
João e Elias são dentistas?
Alice e Marta escrevem no quadro?
As blusas são bonitas?
Os lápis estão dentro da caixa?

2.3 B. Answer each question in the negative, beginning with Não, and then giving the entire sentence in the negative. Observe in the following example:

Você está na sala de aula?
– Não, eu não estou na sala de aula.

Eu estou perto da parede?
Você gosta de ir ao clube?
Eu sou português?
O professor prepara a lição todos os dias?
A jornalista pronuncia bem a palavra?
Raimundo está na igreja?
Nós somos alunos de inglês?
Vocês visitam os parentes?
Nós estamos longe da farmácia?
Teresa e Cristina vão à loja?
Eduardo e Sérgio são bons alunos?
Os rapazes repetem o vocabulário com satisfação?

2.3 C. Repeat each sentence in the negative. Observe in the following example:

Ele fala com os amigos.
Ele não fala com os amigos.

O vendedor aponta para o carro azul.
Os rapazes respondem em português.
Manuel estuda em casa.
Fábio e eu estamos na praia.
Eu chego cedo aqui.
Você para perto do correio.
Eles são bonitos.
Voce e eu gostamos de tomar cerveja de manhã.

The days of the week – Os dias da semana

o domingo [Sunday]
a segunda-feira [Monday]
a terça-feira [Tuesday]
a quarta-feira [Wednesday]
a quinta-feira [Thursday]
a sexta-feira [Friday]
o sábado [Saturday]

The definite article is not used with the days of the week when they come after the verb ser.

Hoje é segunda-feira.	[Today is Monday]
Amanhã é sábado.	[Tomorrow is Saturday]
Os dias da semana são: segunda, terça, quarta, etc.	[The days of the week are: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc.]

In giving the names of several days of the week in a series, the word -feira is used only with the last one mentioned.

Temos aula de português na segunda, terça, quarta e quinta-feira.

[We have Portuguese class on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.]

To express “on” with days of the week:

Use em + a or em + as with feminine days

na segunda-feira	[on Monday]
nas quartas-feiras	[on Wednesdays]

Use em + o or em + os with masculine days

no sábado	[on Saturday]
nos domingos	[on Sundays]

As an alternative construction, we may use: a + os or a + as, but only in the plural

aos sábados	[on Saturdays]
às terças	[on Tuesdays]

Colors – As cores

amarelo, -a [yellow]
branco, -a [white]
preto, -a [black]
roxo, -a [purple]
vermelho, -a [red]
azul [blue]
marrom [brown]
verde [green]
*bege [beige]
*cinza [gray]
*(cor de) laranja [orange]
*(cor de) rosa [pink]

When used, most colors will agree in gender and number with the nouns that they modify. However, the four colors marked by asterisks are always used in the singular form indicated above.

O livro é verde.	[The book is green.]
Os sapatos são rosa* (cor de rosa).	[The shoes are pink.]
A bandeira brasileira é verde e amarela.	[The Brazilian flag is green* and yellow.]*
As calças são cinza*.	[The pants are gray.]
Os olhos dela são azuis.	[Her eyes are blue.]
As carteiras são marrons.	[The desks are brown.]