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Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Se você conversar com um nativo brasileiro informalmente, ele ou ela provavelmente usarão a expressão "cadê?" ao invés de "onde está?" (if you talk to a native brazilian speaker they will probably use the expression "cadê?" rather than "onde está?", meaning "where is it/he/she etc?"). A expressão tem uma origem popular (contração da forma antiquada "que é feito de?", que, primeiro, transformou-se em "quedê"), mas atualmente é largamente difundida, inclusive em meio cultos.

Posted
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Mesmo os falantes nativos têm dificuldades no momento da escrita:

1) Por que: usado em perguntas, quando tem o significado de "razão", "motivo", "causa". Exs. "Por que ela não veio hoje?", "Não sei por que você não consegue um emprego." 

* Também é a união de por + pronome relativo que, significando "pelo qual", "pela qual", "pelos quais", "pelas quais". Ex. "As ruas por que passamos estavam cheias de lixo".

2) Porque: explicação, justificativa, causa, usado em respostas. Exs. "Não fui ao cinema porque perdi a hora", "Não fale alto porque as crianças estão dormindo", "Estou feliz porque ganhei um presente lindo"

3) Por quê: usado no final de uma frase. Exs. "Você não foi à festa por quê?", "Se você estudou para a prova, está nervoso por quê?"

* Quando a expressão aparece sozinha numa frase. Ex. "As crianças ainda não foram para a escola! Por quê?"

4) Porquê: depois de um artigo definido ou indefinido: Ex. "As crianças não entenderam o porquê do castigo", "O porquê do atraso não foi esclarecido até agora", "Diga-me um porquê para não ir ao compromisso amanhã".

Posted
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Common pause fillers in spoken English are "like", "sort of", "well". In Brazilian Portuguese they vary according to region, but some of the most common are "tipo" (= like), "então" (= so), the use of vowels ("a", "o", "e"). I notice that the younger you are, the more you use them. How about your own language?

Posted
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The video below helps you with typical difficulties English speakers have when learning Brazilian Portuguese.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEJdPdPOKJU

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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One of the most difficult pronunciation patterns for foreigners learning Portuguese is the "ão". The youtube video below has some interesting tips for English speakers.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXDW1w7WZbU

Posted
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Once a Londoner told me that if you can see Saint Paul's cathedral from where you were born, you speak Cockney. I immediately thought about my own city accents, for example, if you live "on the other side of the river", or if you live in any of the four districts that originally received immigrants to work in the first industries. I'm curious about stories like that. Do you have any?

Posted
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In Brazilian Portuguese we may find traits of other languages, be it pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar. All our different accents have those influences, for instance, the "carioca" very influenced by the European Portuguese final "s", the "paulistano" with an Italian prosody and intonation, the "paulista" with an indigenous language pronunciation of the "r" (which is the same of the English retroflex "r"), Bantu vocabulary added to everyday life language, etc. What about your mother tongue? What influences does it have?

Posted
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Nós chamamos "sotaque paulistano" à fala própria da cidade de São Paulo e "sotaque paulista", às falas do estado de São Paulo.

A característica que gostaria de ressaltar é a supressão do "s" no plural que ocorre em alguns sotaques mais carregados da cidade, ou seja, uma tendência a dizer "as cadeira", "os carro", "os paulista"... acredito que seja uma influência da língua italiana no português, uma vez que essa língua constrói plurais sem usar o "s" e os bairros onde esse sotaque ocorre foram, no passado, redutos de imigração italiana.

Posted
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Brazilian Portuguese is mainly spread through music, I guess (through soap operas in Portugal), and I know a lot of people want to learn it because of Capoeira. I've also heard it sounds sexy to foreign ears. What about your own language?

Posted
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O sotaque carioca, mais particularmente o s chiado ao final da sílaba, é uma herança direta do português de Lisboa, já que a corte portuguesa veio em grande contingente para o Rio de Janeiro, em 1808, e a cidade se tornou capital da República em 1889. O som do s lisboeta ficou, então, prestigiado por ser o sotaque da realeza.

Além do s, o fonema r mais sussurrado também é bem característico da forma de falar do carioca. Em vez de “porrrta” como os paulistas, eles dizem “porta”. Esse som do "r" carioca assemelha-se à pronúncia do "r" na língua francesa.

Posted
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What is something in your language that you know foreigners will have difficulties? In Brazilian Portuguese there are a lot of traits, specially considering what people learn in classes and what they face in reality, because the distance between written and oral language is huge.

Posted
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Percebi isso há poucos dias: pronunciamos a contagem do número 30 de uma forma muito peculiar quando estamos com pressa: "teum" (31), "tedois" (32), "tetrês" (33), etc. O mais interessante é que isso só acontece quando estamos fazendo contagem, nunca quando dizemos os números isolados: "trinta e um", "trinta e dois", "trinta e três", etc.

Posted
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My parents are old enough to be my grandparents, so I grew up exposed to old-fashioned language, and other kids mocked me a lot. What expressions in your language would highlight a person's age?

Posted
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Uma das diferenças entre as duas línguas é o uso do gerúndio, embora eu tenha ouvido falar que há regiões em Portugal que usam da mesma maneira que no Brasil. Aqui dizemos "estou estudando", "estou dançando", "estou comendo". Em Portugal: "estou a estudar", "estou a dançar", "estou a comer".

Posted
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Há muitos sotaques no Brasil que coincidem com regiões geográficas, mas a língua também varia se o falante vem do interior ou de uma capital, de bairros centrais ou periferias, dependendo de classes social. 

No Sul, temos o gaúcho, o catarinense e o paranaense.

No Sudeste, o paulista, o carioca e o mineiro. No estado de São Paulo, há duas grandes famílias de sotaques, o paulistano e o interiorano.

No Nordeste, os sotaques mais contrastantes são o baiano e o pernambucano.

No Norte, o paraense, o maranhense, o amazonense.

Há também os sotaques dos estados centrais.

Posted
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O plural das palavras terminadas em "ão" pode acontecer apenas acrescentando-se um "s": orgão-orgãos, benção-bençãos, sotão-sotãos, mão-mãos, grão-grãos, irmão-irmãos, artesão-artesãos. Outra forma seria "ães": pão-pães, manifestação-manifestções, composição-composições, botão-botões, paixão-paixões, visão-visões, razão-razões. 

Nesses casos acontece o erro de pronúncia dos estrangeiros, pois é preciso acrescentar um "n", anasalando o som: "limõens", "cançõens", "alteraçõens", "cidadãons", "coraçãons", etc.

Posted
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É comum que os estrangeiros aprendendo Português Brasileiro pronunciem o "a" aberto, e não o correto anasalado, quando está na segunda sílaba de palavras como as seguintes: gostAndo, dançAndo, falAndo, andAndo, amAndo, viajAndo, estAmos, comprAmos, analisAmos, gostAmos, marcAmos, encontrAmos.

Posted
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A nasalização mais óbvia encontra-se nas palavras terminadas em "ão": não, realização, entonação, verão. Entretanto também nas palavras com sílabas terminadas em "m" e "n" essas letras não são pronunciadas e apenas indicam a nasalização da vogal anterior: "cantam" pronuncia-se "cã(n)tãu", "também" pronuncia-se "tã(n)bêi(n)". 

A palavra "muito" é a maior prova dessa tendência à nasalização, pois acrescentasse um "n" à pronúncia: "muinto".


Posted
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Um exemplo de evolução de uma gíria é o uso da palavra "crowd". Foram os surfistas que trouxeram a palavra para o Português, nos anos 90. Primeiramente se dizia "tá crowd" em relação ao mar para descrever uma praia lotada de surfistas (algo ruim). Depois a palavra sofreu uma mutação, incorporando no estrangeirismo um sufixo próprio do português: a gíria tornou-se "crowdeado". "O lugar tá crowdeado", podendo ser qualquer ambiente e não mais apenas a praia. Atualmente está em desuso.

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In Brazil we're prejudiced against some of the country's accents. We tend to value the southeast region accents and devalue the northeast ones. Within São Paulo, where I live, we split the language into good and bad as well, the suburban accent being considered a poor Portuguese. What about your countries?

Posted
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arroz - rice

feijão - beans

batata - potato

tomate - tomato

carne de vaca - beef

bife - steak

bife empanado -breaded steak

frango - chicken

peixe - fish

camarão - shrimp

carne de porco - pork

linguiça - sausage

molho - sauce

salada - salad

alface - lettuce

cebola - onion

alho - garlic

macarrão - pasta

ovo - egg

omelete - omelet

ovo frito - fried egg

pão - bread

manteiga - butter

leite - milk

café - coffee

açúcar - sugar

sal - salt

mel - honey

água - water

suco - juice

refrigerante - soda



Posted
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maçã - apple

pêra - pear

uva - grape

melancia - watermelon

melão - melon

laranja - orange

mexirica - tangerine

banana - banana

mamão - papaya

manga - mango

morango - strawberry

goiaba - guava

abacate - avocado

cereja - cherry

figo - fig

pêssego - peach

ameixa - plum




Edited
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Lately there has been a heated argument about gender in Portuguese. In my language we choose the masculine voice to address groups or to mean neutral voice, for example, if we need to say "everybody in this room", we'd pick "todos" instead of "todas" ("everybody" has a masculine and a feminine options). Now there are people using an invented word: "todes" or "todx"... The main argument is that language is alive and constantly changing. Although I agree on this statement, I'd say it doesn't change by decree. Is there anything similar hapenning in your own languages?

Posted
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comer - eat

mastigar - chew

engolir - swallow

digerir - digest

saborear - taste

beber - drink

bebericar - sip

experimentar - try

cheirar - smell

cozinhar - cook

assar - bake

fritar - fry

preparar/ fazer - make

congelar - freeze

refeição - meal

café da manhã - breakfast

almoço - lunch

jantar - dinner

ceia - supper

lanche - snack

jejum - fast



Posted
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cachorro - dog

cachorrinho, filhote - pup

gato - cat

gatinho, filhote - kitten

passarinho - bird

peixe - fish

cavalo - horse

égua - mare

potro - colt

galinha - hen

galo - rooster

pintinho - chick

pato - duck

patinho - duckling

porco - pig

porquinho, leitão - piglet

ovelha - sheep

carneiro - ram

ovelhinha, carneirinho - lamb

cabra, bode, cabrito - goat

vaca - cow

boi - ox

touro - bull

bezerro - calf





Posted
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mar - sea

rio - river

margem - bank

praia - beach

montanha - mountain

árvore - tree

flor - flower

folha - leaf

sol - sun

lua - moon

nuvem - cloud

estrela - star

céu - sky

horizonte - horizon

água - water

ar - air

terra - earth

fogo - fire

deserto - desert

duna - dune

lago - lake

colina - hill

cachoeira - waterfall

floresta - forest

selva - jungle

pântano/brejo - bog

plantas - plants

animais - animals



Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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In Brazil we study Portuguese as a school subject learning grammar (which makes kids hate it). Once I was told it's not like this in English speaking countries, but I've never understood how it happens. I'm curious! What about other countries?

Posted
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Pode me ajudar, por favor? - Can you help me, please?

Onde fica...? - Where is...?

Quanto custa....? - How much is.....?

Que horas...? - What time....?

O que é isso? - What's this?

Por que? - Why?

Quando? - When?

O que? - What?

Quem? - Who?

Como? - How

Posted
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respirar - breath

dormir - sleep

comer - eat

beber - drink

levantar - get up, stand up

andar, caminhar - walk

sentar - sit

escrever - write

ler - read

contar - count

falar - speak

conversar - talk

dizer - say

escutar - listen

ouvir - hear

cheirar - smell

tocar - touch

experimentar - taste

sentir - feel

chorar - cry

sorrir - smile

rir - laugh

estudar - study

sair - go out

entrar - get in

viajar - travel


Posted
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alto - tall

baixo - short

estatura mediana - medium height

gordo - fat

magro - slim

malhado - fit

moreno - dark-haired, dark skin

loiro - blond

bronzeado - tanned

pele clara - fair skin


Posted
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longo/comprido - long

curto - short

chanel - bob

"no ombro" - shoulder length

enrolado - curly

liso - straight

ondulado - wavy

cacho - lock

franja - bangs

trança - braid

trançado - braided

coque - bun

rabo de cavalo - pony tail

maria-chiquinha - pigtails

penteado - hairdo

castanho - brow

castanho claro - light brown

castanho escuro - dark brown

preto - black

loiro - blond

ruivo - red

branco - grey

careca - bald


Posted
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prato - dish

copo - glass

talheres - silverware

garfo - fork

faca - knife

colher - spoon

guardanapo - napkin

toalha de mesa - tablecloth

xícara - cup

caneca - mug

tijela - bowl

bandeja - tray

panela - pot

liquidificador - blender

geladeira - fridge



Posted
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cabeça - head

cabelo - hair

testa - forehead

orelhas - ears

sobrancelhas - eyebrows

olhos - eyes

nariz - nose

boca - mouth

lábios - lips

dentes - teeth

língua - tongue

queixo - chin

pescoço - neck

tronco - body, torso

ombros - shoulders

braços - arms

cotovelos - elbows

mãos - hands

dedos - fingers

pulso - wrist

peito - chest

barriga - belly

umbigo - belly button

cintura - waist

quadril - hips

virilha - groin

pênis - penis

vulva - vulva

pernas - legs

joelhos - knees

canela - shin

pés - feet

calcanhar - heel

batata da perna/ panturrilha - calf

nádegas/ bunda - buttocks


Posted
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bonito-feio - beautiful-ugly

quente - frio - hot-cold

grande - pequeno - big-small

claro - escuro - clear-dark

alto - baixo - high-low

gordo - magro - fat-thin

legal - chato - nice-boring

fraco - forte - weak-strong

cedo - tarde - early-late

perto - longe - close-far


Posted
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camiseta - Tshirt

camisa - shirt

calça - pants

short - shorts

casaco - coat

saia - skirt

vestido - dress

sapato - shoe

meia - sock

colete - vest

blusa - blouse

meia-calça - tights

calcinha - panty

soutien - bra

cueca - briefs

cinto - belt

moleton - sweatshirt

malha - sweater

jaqueta - jacket


Posted
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Os pronomes possessivos combinam com o substantivo em gênero e número: meu carro, meus carros, minha boneca, minhas bonecas, teu irmão, teus irmãos, tua irmã, tuas irmãs, seu amigo, seus amigos, sua amiga, suas amigas, nosso país, nossos países, nossa mãe, nossas mães, vosso interesse, vossos interesses.

No dia-a-dia, tendemos a usar "seu, sua, seus, suas" no lugar de "teu, tua, teus, tuas" e "dele, dela, deles, delas" no lugar de "seu, sua, seus, suas", por exemplo, "o amigo dela" ao invés de "seu amigo", "a casa deles", "a rua delas".

Posted
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Na escola aprendemos os pronomes pessoais assim: eu, tu, ele, ela, nós, vós, eles, elas. No entanto, no dia-a-dia, na maior parte do país, usamos "você" ao invés de "tu" e "vocês" ao invés de "vós", além de uma preferência por dizer "a gente", ao invés de "nós" (por exemplo, "a gente gosta" ao invés de "nós gostamos"). Em algumas regiões usa-se bastante o "tu", embora muitas vezes conjugado como se fosse "você" ("tu vais" seria a conjugação correta, mas usa-se "tu vai", por exemplo)

Posted
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Na escola, aprendemos a conjugação dos verbos no tempo futuro da seguinte maneira:

1a conjugação - amar: eu amarei, tu amarás, ela/ele amará, nós amaremos, vós amarei, elas/eles amarão

2a conjugação - entender: eu entenderei, tu entenderás, ela/ele entenderá, nós entenderemos, vós entendereis, elas/eles entenderão

3a conjugação - conseguir: eu conseguirei, tu conseguirás, ela/ele conseguirá, nós conseguiremos, vós conseguireis, elas/eles conseguirão

No entanto, no dia-a-dia usamos uma expressão com o verbo ir para formar o futuro, além de usarmos o "você/ vocês" ao invés de "tu/vós':

1) eu vou amar, você vai amar, ela/ele vai amar, nós vamos amar, vocês vão amar, elas/eles vão amar

2) eu vou entender, você vai entender, ela/ele vai entender, nós vamos entender, vocês vão entender, elas/eles vão entender

3) eu vou conseguir, você vai conseguir, ela/ele vai conseguir, nós vamos conseguir, vocês vão conseguir, elas/eles vão conseguir


Posted
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sorrir: eu sorri, você sorriu, ela/ele sorriu, nós sorrimos, vocês sorriram, elas/eles sorriram

prevenir: preveni, preveniu, preveniu, prevenimos, preveniram, preveniram

partir: parti, partiu, partiu, partimos, partiram, partiram

conseguir: consegui, conseguiu, conseguiu, conseguimos, conseguiram, conseguiram

ir: eu fui, você foi, ela/ele foi, nós fomos, vocês foram, elas/eles foram

vir: vim, veio, veio, viemos, vieram, vieram

Posted
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ler: eu li, você leu, ela/ele leu, nós lemos, vocês leram, elas/eles leram

escrever: escrevi, escreveu, escreveu, escrevemos, escreveram, escreveram

prender: prendi, prendeu, prendeu, prendemos, prenderam, prenderam

correr: corri, correu, correu, corremos, correram, correram

aparecer: apareci, apareceu, apareceu, aparecemos, apareceram, apareceram

eleger: elegi, elegeu, elegeu, elegemos, elegeram, elegeram

Posted
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falar: eu falei, você falou, ela/ele falou, nós falamos, vocês falaram, elas/eles falaram

cantar: cantei, cantou, cantou, cantamos, cantaram, cantaram

jogar: joguei, jogou, jogou, jogamos, jogaram, jogaram

pagar: paguei, pagou, pagou, pagamos, pagaram, pagaram

pegar: peguei, pegou, pegou, pegamos, pegaram, pegaram

chegar: cheguei, chegou, chegou, chegamos, chegaram, chegaram

comprar: comprei, comprou, comprou, compramos, compraram, compraram

Posted
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Dormir: eu durmo, você dorme, ela/ele dorme, nós dormimos, vocês dormem, elas/eles dormem

Partir: eu parto, você parte, ela/ele parte, nós partimos, vocês partem, elas/eles partem

Corrigir: eu corrijo, você corrige, ela/ele corrige, nós corrigimos, vocês corrigem, elas/eles corrigem

Abrir: eu abro, você abre, ela/ele abre, nós abrimos, vocês abrem, elas/eles abrem

Sorrir: eu sorrio, você sorri, ela/ele sorri, nós sorrimos, vocês sorriem, elas/eles sorriem

Ir: eu vou, você vai, ela/ele vai, nós vamos, vocês vão, elas/eles vão

Vir: eu venho, você vem, ela/ele vem, nós vimos, vocês vêm, elas/eles vêm


Posted
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Ler: eu leio, você lê, ela/ele lê, nós lemos, vocês lêem, elas/eles lêem

Escrever: eu escrevo, você escreve, ela/ele escreve, nós escrevemos, vocês escrevem, elas/eles escrevem

Beber: eu bebo, você bebe, ela/ele bebe, nós bebemos, você bebem, elas/eles bebem

Comer: eu como, você come, ela/ele come, nós comemos, vocês comem, elas/eles comem

Correr: eu corro, você corre, ela/ele corre, nós corremos, vocês correm, elas/eles correm

Vencer: eu venço, você vence, ela/ele vence, nós vencemos, vocês vencem, elas/eles vencem

Crescer: eu cresço, você cresce, ela/ele cresce, nós crescemos, vocês crescem, elas/eles crescem

Entender: eu entendo, você entende, ela/ele entende, nós entendemos, vocês entendem, elas/eles entendem

Ver (irregular): eu vejo, você vê, ela/ele vê, nós vemos, vocês vêem, elas/eles vêem


Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Amar: eu amo, você ama, ela/ela ama, nós amamos, vocês amam, elas/eles amam.

Trabalhar: eu trabalho, você trabalha, ela/ele trabalha, nós trabalhamos, vocês trabalham, elas/eles trabalham

Chegar: eu chego, você chega, ela/ele chega, nós chegamos, vocês chegam, elas/eles chegam

Desenhar: eu desenho, você desenha, ela/ele desenha, nós desenhamos, vocês desenham, elas/eles desenham

Carregar: eu carrego, você carrega, ela/ele carrega, nós carregamos, vocês carregam, elas/eles carregam

Encontrar: eu encontro, você encontra, ela/ele encontra, nós encontramos, você encontram, elas/eles encontram.

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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casa - house

prédio - building

praça - square

parque - park

ruas - streets

farmácia - drugstore

padaria - bakery

cabeleireiro - hair dresser 

açougue - butcher's

mercado - market

horti-fruti - grocer's

restaurante - restaurant

posto de gasolina - gas station

hospital - hospital

aeroporto - airport

livraria - book shop

biblioteca - library

museu - museum

prefeitura - city hall

escola - school

loja - shop

banco - bank

academia - gym

ponto de ônibus - bus stop

estação de trem - train station

lavanderia - laundromat

escritório - office

fábrica - factory plant


Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Portuguese
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Does "strange" make the comparative "stranger" or "more strange"?

For example, in "this situation is stranger than the previous one" or "this situation is more strange than the previous one"?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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mesa - table

cama - bed

cadeira - chair

sofá - sofa

poltrona - armchair

armário - cabinet

guarda-roupa - wardrobe

privada/ vaso sanitário - toilet

pia - sink

tapete - rug


Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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cômodos - rooms

sala - living room

sala de jantar - dining room

cozinha - kitchen

quarto - bedroom

banheiro - bathroom

quintal - yard

jardim - garden

garagem - garage

porta - door

janela - window

parede - wall

telhado - roof

chão - floor



Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Which sentence is correct? Or, are they both correct? "I'll wait to see if there will be an alert message"/ "I'll wait to see if there is an alert message".

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Portuguese
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Besides "raining cats and dogs" what other expressions you natives hear from speakers learning exclusively through course books?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Os cumprimentos mais formais, sendo que a formalidade no Brasil está ligada principalmente ao mundo do trabalho e à idade, embora não sejam uma camisa de força e variem muito de acordo com escolhas pessoais, são: bom dia, boa tarde e boa noite, como vai?, tudo bem?, adeus (esse ninguém usa, me faz pensar em saídas muito dramáticas), até logo, até mais

Os mais informais: oi, olá, tudo certo?, tudo bom?, tchau, 

Há também regionalismos e gírias: dia!, tarde!, noite!, e aí?, certinho?, falô!, inté!, até!, Té!


Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Can you recommend trustful writing manuals? I'm confused searching the internet because nobody seems to agree on punctuation or on what a run-on sentence is. I'm not worried about the English language itself, but about style and communication quality. An online proofreading course would also be great for me.

Edited
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I'm aware of the general rules regarding the use of the definite article, but I still get confused in certain circumstances. For example, in "(...) a number of contributions from THE French pragmatic sociology to THE sociology of collective mobilizations" I would use the second article, but not the first, and I can't justify it... it's just intuition. Am I wrong?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I'm revising a text and it's a non-native writing in English. She prefers to use "of" than phrasing with inversions, and it's making me uneasy. I don't know if it's preferable in a formal context (it's a doctoral thesis). For example, "the revision of this thesis", instead of "this thesis revision", and "the sections of this thesis", instead of "this thesis sections". Can anybody help me?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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O pronome evoluiu de "vossa mercê" para "vosmecê" e, então para "você". Nas conversas atuais, usa-se também "cê" (e "vc" nas mídias escritas). O "tu" só é usado, no contexto brasileiro, em regiões específicas, apesar de ser ensinado nas escolas de todo o país como o pronome "correto" gramaticalmente. Em alguns lugares também usa-se o "tu", porém com o verbo conjugado como se fosse "você", por exemplo: "Tu vai?" (e não "tu vais?")

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Do you have any personal stories when language put you in a difficult situation? I was once in Spain with a friend and she made the typical mistake regarding Portuguese-Spanish: "Estoy embarazada!". In Portuguese, "estou embaraçada" means "I'm embarrassed", in Spanish it means "I'm pregnant".

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I'm not a native speaker but I've never heard or read "Yo me gusta". I believe the correct is "Me gusta".

Edited
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Can I replace "yet" with "even" in these sentences: "The boss called us, telling of yet more problems", "Inflation had risen to a yet higher level", "Each empty room made the next door yet more threatening". Tricky words those two for a Portuguese speaker!

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Once I've read the particle "up" in phrasal verbs has a meaning: "completely". I was wondering if it happens with other particles (for, out, in, etc), or is it merely a question of memorizing meaning, other than trying to infer it? Phrasal verbs are a Portuguese speaker's nightmare!

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I was writing an essay and had to look up the verb to cry, finding weep, tear, mourn, grieve, whine, wail, blubber, but none of them approached what I meant. We have this expression in Portuguese, "olhos se encheram de lágrimas" which is something like "eyes became full of tears", it means, when you just start crying quietly. Is there any similar expression in English?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I have a question about verb tense in the following passage: "Partially digested food starts to arrive in the small intestine as semi-liquid chyme, one hour after it is eaten. After two hours the stomach HAS EMPTIED." Could I use a verb in the simple presente instead of perfect? For example, "the stomach IS empty", or "the stomach EMPTIES".

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Here a Portuguese version of the Xmas song, with lyrics. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-lMPtpHHa4 

Is there a version in your language?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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"The company's mission or The mission of the company or The company mission?" is just an example of choosing among the genitive ('s), a phrase, or an adjective expression (sorry, I don't know how to call this last one). I've read somewhere that English is currently tending to transform nouns into "adjectives" ("company" would work as an adjective in my example, not a name anymore, but a quality). Is it really a trend? Is there any rule for that trend?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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pretend - fingir

intend - pretender

prejudice - preconceito

college - faculdade

library - biblioteca

support - apoiar

devolve - transferir

anthen - hino

hymn - cântico

parents - pais

costume - fantasia

eventually - finalmente, no final

fabric - tecido

lecture - palestra

novel - romance

application - inscrição

attend - participar, assistir

sensible - sensato

sensitive - sensível

realize - perceber

actually - atualmente

enroll - matricular-se, inscrever-se

push - empurrar

convict - condenado



Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Brazilian modernist literature poses a lot of difficulties to foreign readers (and translators) because of the experimental use of language and its turning to idiosyncrasies. If you're studying that language and would like to challenge yourself try reading "Grande Sertão Veredas" (even the title is almost impossible to translate). Another very good one is "Vidas Secas" (something like "Dry lives"). The first by Guimarães Rosa, the latter by Graciliano Ramos.

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I've just came up with a very nice page: thoughtco.com

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I love neologisms, but they are slightly more restricted in my mother tongue than in English, at least I have this impression, because I read a lot, specially magazines and newspapers, and I always get surprised with new usage of words. In Brazil, this creations are restricted to informal speech and literature, of course,

I was researching about it and found an interesting text: "Part of the strength and vitality of English is its readiness to welcome new words and expressions and to accept new meanings for old words. (...) Before grabbing the latest usage, ask yourself a few questions. Is it likely to pass the test of time? If not, are you using it to show just how cool you are? Has it already become a clichê? Does it do a job no other word or expression does just as well? Does it rob the language of a useful or well-liked meaning? Is it being adapted to make the writers' prose sharper, crisper, more euphonious, easier to understand - in other words, better?"

I believe this is the moment a foreign speaker feels even foreigner (yeah, I've just tried creating one, sorry!) Harder than learning a language is keeping up with it! But I like it!

Edited
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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O funk brasileiro têm feito muito sucesso nos últimos anos e acabou se tornando uma nova manifestação cultural a representar o país internacionalmente, atraindo o interesse de estrangeiros. Entretanto, as letras são de muito difícil compreensão, até mesmo para brasileiros, você precisa estar ligado ao movimento cultural para compreender 100%. Os assuntos são tratados com duplo sentido, na maioria das vezes, além das gírias que se renovam vertiginosamente. Você tem curiosidade sobre alguma letra?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Is there any meaning difference between "may" and "might"? For example, "I may go to the beach for the holidays" or "I might go to the beach for the holidays"? I've learnt that I should use them to talk about probability, but what's the actual use?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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É difícil memorizar as regras até para nós falantes de Português. Enquanto o Inglês tem somente "why" e "because", temos: por que, por quê, porque e porquê.

Por que: faz a pergunta e nunca vem no final da frase.

Por quê: faz a pergunta e vem no final.

Porque: responde a pergunta.

Porquê: sempre precedido de um artigo (o porquê), um pronome, um adjetivo ou um numeral.


Por que é tão difícil essa língua?!


Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Scusa mio Italiano terribile! Peró c'é qualcuno che puó raccomandare degli strumenti per impare un pò de vocabolario del Siciliano? Lo stesso su pronuncia?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Discute-se academicamente se são duas línguas ou não. Apesar disso, o senso comum continua insistindo no não, totalmente alheio à discussão técnico-política.

Obviamente, os portugueses defendem aquela mesma posição contrária, então o "português brasileiro" seria uma deformação, uma língua mal falada.

Tenho uma história pessoal a respeito que aconteceu num Burguer King em Copacabana: a conversa com a senhora portuguesa corria amigável, até eu dizer alguma coisa sobre uma canadense e ela me corrigir "Canadense não, canadiana, o correto é canadiana". Teve início uma discussão acalorada, eu apresentando argumentos estruturais, ela apegando-se ao léxico e ao sotaque. Já muito irritada, perguntei: "então nossa língua é mera deformação da sua?" Ela silenciou e apenas sorriu. 

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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What's the difference between "I like dancing" and "I like to dance"? 

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Does anybody know any source which could help me understand jazz lyrics? Every time I try there's at least a verse I don't really get the meaning, no matter how much I google it or read dictionaries. I can't think of any example right now, but what I meant is if there's any specific dictionary.

Edited
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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A maior dificuldade para estrangeiros que desejam aprender português é lidar com os gêneros. Há substantivos considerados femininos e substantivos considerados masculinos, e os adjetivos acompanham essa definição, por exemplo: "menina bonitA", "menino bonitO", "piscina limpA", "quarto limpO". A chave é atentar para as terminações "a" e "o".

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Once I was in a class and raised my hand saying "I have a doubt". The teacher laughed and replied "now you'll talk about God!". I learned I should have said "I have a question". It was British context. Is it the same for American English?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I was told by a native speaker that Past Perfect is not used in everyday life conversations. Is it so?

For example: "I went to Europe last year, but I had been there before". This person told me a native would prefer to say "I went to Europe last year, but I was there before". 

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Is it mandatory to use quantifiers in sentences like these:

"Do you have any cofee?", "Can I have some wine?", "I don't have any cats", "Can you speak any other language?". I mean, would it be too weird if I left them out?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Alguién puede, por favor, explicarme los pronombres de sitio? "Ahí" especialmente es muy confuso para una hablante de Português: "aí" significa el sitio donde está la persona con quien se habla, me parece que no es así en Español...

Tampoco comprendo una frase como "Darle el libro a él"... el "le" ya no significa "a él"?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I'd recommend ebay page as a great source of vocabulary, both because of objects names and descriptions. I use it a lot with students, specially for clothing and housing related words. I've also learned a lot myself because of my curiosity, there are things you would never find in books or that you would never even imagine to ask about.

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Which accent, in America, is considered standard? In Brazil it's the southeast accent, actually comprising Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo's, although "cleansing" them from strong traits... does something similar happen to American standard accent?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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someday: describes an indefinite future time ('I'd like to see him again someday')

some day: refers to a single day ('I have an appointment some day next month')

the other day: means a few days ago ("The other day I saw her downtown")

another day: an action is not going to be finished today ('I'll finish the book another day')

the other day: means a few days ago ("The other day I saw her downtown")but one day he wans't there'/ 'One day this world will be a perfect place to live') * "one day" is more dramatic than "someday"

all day long: the whole day ('We waited for you at the station all day long')

all in a day's work: of a task, normal and ordinary ('Dealing with screaming kids is all in a day's work when you are a pediatrician')

any day: any time, no particular time ('I don't need the report back immediately, any day will do')

any day now: some day very soon, imminently ('We're expecting a letter from her any day now')

at the end of the day: ultimately ('At the end of the day, it's your decision and nobody else's')

by the day: one day at a time, per day ('I rent this room by the day')

by day: during the day ('By day, Mary worked in an office, by night, she took classes')

call it a day: to stop working ('I'm tired, let's call it a day')

day by day: daily, as the days pass ('Day by day she grew more confidente about the job')

day in and day out: everyday ('They eat nothing but vegetables, day in, day out')

day-to-day: daily, regularly occurring, current ('And you'll oversee the company's day-to-day operations while I'm travelling')



Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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A student of mine went to Boston for an English course and at the very first day he was nicknamed "Mr. Bond" because he used "perhaps" instead of "maybe". In this occasions I have to agree a native teacher is really necessary! I'm aware of the most common differences, such as using "have got", "underground"... or the accent, but I could never think about that one!

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I'm attaching a comment I wrote about the short story "Araby", for the English Literature course at the University of São Paulo.

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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En Portugues es muy ordinario utilizar la palabra "dúvida" (traducción literal de "duda"), por ejemplo, si no estoy segura de uma explanación, puedo decir "Tenho uma dúvida" (tengo una duda). Sé que no es así en inglés, que yo deberia decir "I have a question", y no "I have a doubt". Cómo seria correcto en Español? "Tengo una duda" o "Tengo una questión"?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I was checking an essay correction and, when replying to it, came up with a grammar question. Should I say "I understood your corrections" or "I've understood your corrections"? Are them both possible, depending on my emphacizing the action in the past, or the result of that action?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Hello native speakers! Can I reply "cheers", instead of "you're welcome", to any thank you situation? Is it exclusively British?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I've been a teacher of English, Portuguese and History for 27 years. Actually, I used to play being a teacher when I was a kid and helped many of my friends to learn writing, or to get better grades at school. After all those years, I've got more and more convinced that mistakes are the greatest opportunity to learn anything. As a teacher, when I spot a mistake, it helps me understand how the students mind is operating. As an eternal student, when I get aware of a mistake, I feel I climbed one more step. Sometimes I realize it had been on my face, but I was totally blinded, and that's a definite change. Let's not see mistakes as failures! They're the very core of learning!

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Do you have any tips on how to teach English in such a case? Any specific material? 

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Brasileiros aprendendo Inglês têm muitos problemas com essa palavra.

Muito, muita, muitos, muitas = very, many , much e a lot of

Por exemplo:

Tenho muitos(as) amigos(as) : I have a lot of friends.

Não tenho muitos amigos: I don't have many friends.

Tenho muito dinheiro. I have a lot of Money.

Não tenho muito dinheiro: i don't have much Money.

Ela é muito bonita: She's very pretty.

Gosto muito de você: I like you very much.

É muito tarde: It's very late.


A mesma confusão acontece quando aprendemos Espanhol... uma grande confusão entre "muy" e "mucho".



Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I understand the gereneral idea of certainty/ probability involved in the choice of future "tense" structures in English. I've read the rules countless times, but there are still situations when I'm not sure which to pick. I've tried youtube videos with natives explaining it, however they contradict each other most of times. I have this intuition that seeing "will" as a modal verb could be helpful... Can anybody help me?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Cómo se dicen las seguientes expresiones en Español? Hice um rol en Inglês/ Português .

Beat around the bush: Enrolar

Better late than never: Antes tarde do que nunca

That's the last straw: É a gota d'água

To cost an arm and a leg: Custar os olhos da cara

To cut corners: Fazer gambiarra

To hit the nail on the head: acertar na mosca

Ball is in your court: a batata tá na sua mão

Bite off more than you can chew: Abraçar coisas demais

Blessing in desguise: Há males que vêm pro bem

Hear it on the grapevine: Um passarinho me contou

Kill two birds with one stone: Matar dois coelho com uma cajadada só

Make a long story short: Pra resumir

Sit on the fence: em cima do muro

Taste of your own medicine: Provar do próprio veneno

Pulling one's leg: Cutucando



Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I've never really understood why I should focus on the difference between tense and aspect because it's not a discussion in my mother tongue. I was researching about it, and found this quick explanation which I considered to be a starter. It's just descriptive, but made me think about researching more, specially to understand modal verbs.

https://www.lawlessenglish.com/learn-english/grammar/tense-aspect/

Edited
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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I have proven myself it works very well! 

I've taken up a new hobby which is learning astrology and tarot and, as I'm always worried about improving my skills, decided to do so through youtube videos in English. To my surprise it ended up being a great exercise because the subject is really open, in terms of vocabulary. Of course, they deal most of time with feelings and psychological descriptions, but everything is possible to be discussed in that universe. I listen to at least one everyday, and I'm finally getting confident my listening skill is teacher level.

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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The difference between written and spoken Portuguese is really great in Brazil, and the explanation is in the colonial heritage, specially considering the high hierarchization present in our society. Language is an asset of the educated classes, which makes us very prejudiced against accents and oral uses (the contributions of other cultures that mixed with the Portuguese are not welcome as "oficial language"). I'm referring to the common sense, of course, but that is a heated academic discussion. I intend with such a long introduction to ask how this difference between written and spoken happens in other languages.

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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It's said in Brazil that "saudade" is an exclusive Brazilian word. It's a noun you use when you're missing somebody (we say "I have saudade"). You can also feel it regarding a time in the past, or a place. How would you say that in your languages?

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
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Learning English, French, Italian, Spanish

Languages are changeable, we all know that, but I'd like to talk about how translations play a role in this process and evolution. In my mother language (Brazilian Portuguese) there have been many changes lately which can only be explained by the influence of English and careless translations. It even became a joke about how people tend to use the gerund in an abusive way, which is not typical of the language, and is clearly the reproduction of the English Future Continuous (not exactly where it would be used in English itself). This was credited to the translation of telemarketing training material, so what could be said in a direct way becomes unnatural. For example, "vou te ligar" becomes "vou estar te ligando" ("I'll be calling you").

Another example is the word we use for billboard: "outdoor". Yes, we use the English adverb as a noun. People say this is because the first billboards were imported and "outdoors" was written in the packaging.

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
Native
Portuguese
Learning English, French, Italian, Spanish

I was translating a scientific article from English to Portuguese for a major academic journal, and my greatest difficulty was presented right at the title: "Vagabond Capitalism". The term is very tricky because its "natural" translation would be "vagabundo", but this has a heavy connotation in Brazil, besides sharing other meanings with English. Another thing I had to consider is the term is not that common in everyday life for English speakers, although it's a really common way of swearing in my mother language. 

Posted
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
Native
Portuguese
Learning English, French, Italian, Spanish

Someone commented about a complaint of mine in a site forum (not here): "this is my clutching pearls face". I didn't know the expression, so I looked it up and understood it as cinical. My question is if my understanding is correct, because I cannot believe why that person would be so agressive.

Edited
Posts0Likes0Joined19/9/2019LocationSão Paulo / BR
Native
Portuguese
Learning English, French, Italian, Spanish

As a translator I'm often thinking about idiomatic issues, especially the ones I believe are totally linked to culture , thus hard to translate.

In Brazilian Portuguese we have this "capricha", a demand when you are buying something to eat (on street stalls mainly). You ask the attendant to "caprichar" when you want them to give you extra topping, or extra sauce, or extra anything. It's not refill and you don't pay for it. It involves being friendly and getting some advantage because you're nice, and you ask the other person to be nice too.

Do you have any examples like this in your own languages?

Edited
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