0.1.2 Nouns & Articles

Question 1

What is meant by the gender of a noun in Portuguese?

Answer 1

Every noun in Portuguese has a grammatical gender: masculine or feminine

• The definite articles (“the”) are o (masculine) and a (feminine).
• The indefinite articles (“a”/ “an”) are um (masculine) and uma (feminine).

Gender is a property of the word, not of the person or thing it refers to.

Question 2

Translate to Portuguese:

a / an → ___ ?

Answer 2

um (masculine) / uma (feminine) ___

In English, “a” vs. “an” depends on the sound at the start of the next word.

In Portuguese, you just change the article based on gender: um (m.) or uma (f.)

Question 3

Translate to Portuguese:

a woman

Answer 3

uma mulher

“woman” = mulher

Mulher is feminine, so it uses the indefinite article uma.

Question 4

Translate to Portuguese:

a man

Answer 4

um homem

“man” = homem

Homem is a masculine noun, so it uses the indefinite article um.

Question 5

Translate to Portuguese:

a girl

Answer 5

uma menina

“girl” = menina

Note that you can usually tell a feminine noun because it ends in -a (although there are many exceptions).

Moreover, in Portugal menina can be used informally to also mean young lady.

You may commonly hear rapariga also used, but it is not recommended as it can be offensive in Brazil.

Question 6

Translate to Portuguese:

a boy

Answer 6

um menino

“boy” = menino

Note that you can usually tell a masculine noun because it ends in -o (although there are many exceptions). Alternatively, you may hear a young adult or a teenage male referred to as rapaz.

Question 7

Translate to Portuguese:

a child

Answer 7

uma criança

“child” = criança

Even though a child can be any gender, the word criança is always grammatically feminine.

If you really need to specify gender, you could say um menino (“a boy”) or uma menina (“a girl”).

Question 8

Translate to Portuguese:

the children

Answer 8

as crianças

“children” (f.) (plural) = crianças

This word is always feminine even if some or all of the children in the group are boys.

Also note that, while in English, “children” can mean either kids or someone’s sons or daughters, these are different words in Portuguese.

In Portuguese, if you are referring to your kids (i.e., your offspring), you’d be referring to your filhos (sons or daughters). These ideas are separated.

Question 9

Translate to Portuguese:

the woman

Answer 9

a mulher

“the” = a (f.) (singular)

Use a for the definite article “the”, when the corresponding noun is both singular and feminine.

Question 10

Translate to Portuguese:

the women

Answer 10

as mulheres

“the” = as (f.) (plural)

In Portuguese, most nouns ending in -r, -z, and s make the plural by adding -es.

Question 11

Translate to Portuguese:

the man

Answer 11

o homem

“the” = o (m.) ( singular)

Use o for the definite article “the” when the corresponding noun is both singular and masculine.

Question 12

Translate to Portuguese:

the men

Answer 12

os homens

“the” = os (m.) (plural)

In Portuguese, you can say “men” with or without the article. You could also use it without the definite article (homens). They’re both valid.

In English, adding “the” would sound like you’re referring to specific men. In Portuguese, it doesn’t.

Question 13

Translate to Portuguese:

the boys

Answer 13

os meninos

“the” = os (m.) (plural)

Note that menino has a regular plural in Portuguese (meninos). If the boys are older, such as teenagers, you may also hear os rapazes.

Question 14

Translate to Portuguese:

money

Answer 14

dinheiro

Question 15

Translate to Portuguese:

some money

Answer 15

algum dinheiro

“some” = algum (m.) (singular)

Note that we use algum instead of alguma, since dinheiro is masculine.”

Question 16

Translate to Portuguese:

some men

Answer 16

alguns homens

“some” = alguns (m.) (plural)

Note that the word was formed by simply taking the masculine singular algum and changing the ending -m to -ns to make it plural, to agree with the masculine plural homens.

Question 17

Translate to Portuguese:

some children

Answer 17

algumas crianças

“some” = algumas (f.) (plural)

Algumas is used here because crianças is feminine grammatically (even though it refers to children of any gender).

The word matches the noun in gender and number.

Question 18

Translate to Portuguese:

a boy and a girl

Answer 18

um menino e uma menina

“and” = e

Question 19

Translate to Portuguese:

the boys and the girls

Answer 19

os meninos e as meninas

Articles change in the plural:

• o → os
• a → as

In Portuguese, when referring to a mixed or general group (boys and girls), we use the masculine plural: os meninos.

Question 20

Translate to Portuguese:

a student

Answer 20

um estudante

“student” = estudante (m.)

The word estudante does not change for gender; the article shows whether it’s masculine or feminine. Say uma estudante if it refers to a female.

Question 21

Translate to Portuguese:

a teacher

Answer 21

um professor

“(school) teacher” = professor (m.)

Note that many profession words form the feminine by changing the ending from -or to -ora. e.g., uma professora.

Question 22

Translate to Portuguese:

a professor

Answer 22

uma professora

“(university) professor” = professora (f.)

Note that a school “teacher” and a university “professor” are the same word in Portuguese. Also note that many profession words form the feminine by changing the ending from -or to -ora. (A male professor is um professor)

Question 23

Translate to Portuguese:

a school

Answer 23

uma escola

“school” = escola (f.)

Note that escola is a feminine noun, which you can guess because it ends in -a. So, we use uma.

Question 24

Translate to Portuguese:

the house

Answer 24

a casa

“house” = casa (f.)

Note that in Portuguese, all common nouns have a gender. casa is feminine, which you can guess because it ends in -a.

The helpful part is that these endings often work like a built-in hint.

Question 25

# Translate to Portuguese: a _car_

Answer 25

um _carro_ ## Footnote "car" = *carro* (m.) Note that *carro* is masculine, which you can guess because it ends in *-o*. And it uses the indefinite article *um*.

Question 26

# Translate to Portuguese: a _passport_

Answer 26

um _passaporte_ ## Footnote "passport" = *passaporte* (m.) There is no gender rule with *-e* endings, so you must simply memorize that *passaporte* is masculine.

Question 27

# Translate to Portuguese: _two_ cars

Answer 27

_dois_ carros ## Footnote "two" = *dois* (m.) Use *dois* for masculine nouns.

Question 28

# Translate to Portuguese: _two_ houses

Answer 28

_duas_ casas ## Footnote "two" = *duas* (f.) Note that Portuguese uses *dois* for masculine nouns and *duas* for feminine nouns.