Hi, all! Thought it'd be a good idea to open up a thread for people--like me--who are studying/learning Portuguese at the moment. Perhaps different topics like spelling, variations (Portugal/Brazil/Mozabimque) or grammar, etc. can be discussed. I will get the ball rolling. Faz 3 meses que estudo Português e gosto muito da minha clase! (Feel free to correct any mistakes in there.) Tchau!
I believe he wanted to say "aula." "Classe" is used more for describing socioeconomic situations, such as middle class, working class, etc.
You're right. Aula. However, wouldn't 'curso' be appropriate as well? "Aula" does refer to a singular class, but apparently the OP is taking a Portuguese course; he's taking Portuguese classes.
Yeah, curso can be used as well. I've seen both words used in this situation. Either way, if Metro were to write that on a test or paper for his class, he should get it right.
Thanks for the corrections/tips, fellas: much appreciated. Now, the following dúvida is the one killing me right now. I will quote what my textbook says and then explain my concern currently. My classmates and I are being taught the past preterit tense, btw. Keep in mind that the teacher is Brazilian and on tests, he expects us to answer in the Portuguese that he uses in the test. In other words, if he asks in Brazilian Portuguese--which is pretty much the case all the time--he expects the answer in Brazilian Portuguese, as well. This is what my book says: Now, if I am taking a test, let's say, and I have to written about playing soccer in the past--using the preterit tense--how do I show my teacher the distinction (that I am using the past tense)? In other words, if I write "nós jogamos futebol", there is no way he would know I was referring to the past (unless I provide context clues). So do I write in the accent? Example: "nós jogámos futebol". ?? Is my textbook wrong? Personally, I would prefer to write in the accent to make the distinction. Plus it would show o professor that I am actually paying attention and studying. I know in the big picture this may not sound like an issue at all but I still find this an interesting point. Obrigado anticipadamente por sua ajuda.
Some of the BigSoccer Brasileiros who either live in Brazil or have been in America less time than I have may be able to help you better - I refer here to major changes in spelling which language authorities in Brazil and Portugal agreed upon rather recently. But as far as I am aware, past tenses such as "jogamos" and "falamos" were not affected. Although I only studied in Brazil until 6th grade, I remember enough - and have been, for the past 15 years, reading Brazilian newspapers either online or in print almost on a daily basis - to know that in past tense verb conjugation, in many cases, there was no difference between the present tense and the past tense. So as you say, one would need contextual clues to understand whether it is a reference to a past activity or a current one. Here are other simple examples: Nós comemos feijoada - We eat feijoada Nós comemos feijoada quatro vezes por mês - We eat feijoada four times a month Nós comemos feijoada ontem - We ate feijoada yesterday Nós visitamos a nossa avó - We visit our grandmother Nós visitamos a nossa avó cinco vezes por ano - We visit our grandmother five times a year Nós visitamos a nossa avó quando o nosso avô faleceu - We visited our grandmother when our grandfather passed away Nós estudamos italiano - We study Italian Nós estudamos italiano porque é um curso obrigatório na nossa escola - We study Italian because it is a mandatory course in our school Nós estudamos italiano durante seis anos e mesmo assim esquecemos tudo - We studied Italian during six years and even still we forgot everything As for "Falámos português na aula. ----> We spoke Portuguese in class." And frankly speaking, this is the first time in my life that I even found out that European Portuguese adds an accent to the verb conjugation to distinguish it from the present tense. I do not read (nor care to read) Portuguese publications and am heavily biased towards Brazilian ones.
Can anybody recommend a good language school in brasil, I'm planning of spending the summer there learning the language. I speak spanish already so it shouldnt be that hard. A school that is not too expensive and and is in a nice area.
There is a CNA in Ipanema. About 5 mins from the beach and next to the Nossa Senhora da Paz square. http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Rua Barão da Torre 446&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=sv&sa=N&tab=wl But surely there are more language schools around Ipanema, Leblon, Copacabana and all Zona Sul. That's the places I think you can find language schools for foreigners, if you are going to Rio de Janeiro.
In Sao Paulo we used the word classe in this context. As in "classe de aula" ... meaning the room itself as in "sala de aula".
2 things I haven't been able to figure out, and my tutor is Portuguesa and doesn't follow soccer so she couldn't help me these. 1) "acerta com <insert player>" - Does this mean to talk with a player, agree to terms with a player, finalize something, etc? And any info on the actually verb would help to. 2) "parcela das luvas" - what is this? I take it has to has to mean more than the direct translation. Thanks in advance
1 - Agree to terms 2 - Sort of a signing bonus given to a player from the club... can be viewed as advanced salary payment in a way but I think the first definition is more correct. Parcela means a part of the payment when the bonus paid in multiple payments instead of all up front.
Hi, I trying to teach myself Portuguese, I picked it up pretty quick (only really basic stuff and putting together small sentences). Im fluent also in french italian and spanish...It really helps knowing other Latin languages cause i could use them as a reference. Im debating buying Rossetta Stone CDs to learn more....has anyone tried it? Anything out there thats cheap and you suggest me trying?
What's the closest portugues phrase or saying to the english equivalent of "shitting the bed". Example: Person 1: All Barcelona had to do was score on a 10 man chelsea. Person 2: Yeah, they shit the bed bigtime. Other Example: Durant only had to make 1 of 2 free throws to win the game, but he shit the bed and bricked both.
What's the more common way to say the following: Vou ficar no aguardo da sua resposta. Ou Fico aguardando da sua resposta. Ou tem uma melhor maneira pra dizer isso? Obrigado de antemão.
Very interesting thread! I can try to answer your questions while I improve my english a little more. A more informal way would be: Aguardo a sua resposta. But the first one is correct too, in the second the only mistake was the preposition "da", the correct is to use the article "a".
Eu posso ajuda-lo com isso, se você pode ajuda-me com o português. Se você vê um erro quando escrevo, somente diga, 'tá? Ainda estou aprendendo.
Valeu. Yeah, i'm trying to change up how I speak and write in order to not sound so robotic or formal. Se voce tenha qualquer perguntas sobre inglés, dispare. Eu ficaria feliz em ajudar. E claro, eu aceitaria mais ajuda com meu portugues, haha.
Thanks. Is always good to ask to someone that has the english as the first languange. I'll give to you some more tips: You missed the sentence. The correct conjugation of the verb "ter" in this situation is "tiver" (future subjunctive), not "tenha" (present subjunctive). And that "dispare" is unusual in brazilian portuguese, we only use the verb "disparar" when we're talking about firearms. But I think that in portuguese of Portugal it's normal.
I haven't seen your post. If I write something wrong in english you can help me too! That sentence has some mistakes, the correct would be: "Eu posso ajudá-lo com isso, se você puder me ajudar com o português. Se você vir um erro quando eu for escrever, somente diga, tá?"
It's always good to ask someone that had English as their first language. Or It's always good to ask someone whose first languange is English. And the words I highlighted in your sentence are unecessary and should be taken out. Valeu novamente.
Thanks for the tips. I often have doubts when or not is necessary to use the article "the" before some words.