Portuguese Year 3: Determiners, numeral quantifiers and adverbs
Portuguese, Year 3 (Portugal): Words have jobs: some point or say whose something is, some say how many, and some say how, when or where.
Small words with a job
Small words often stand next to a noun. The possessive determiner says whose it is: «o meu livro» (my book), «a nossa casa» (our house). The demonstrative determiner points: «este livro» (this book), «aquela casa» (that house). The numeral quantifier says how many: «dois livros» (two books), «vinte casas» (twenty houses). The adverb says how, when, where or how much, and never changes: «hoje» (today), «aqui» (here), «depressa» (quickly), «muito» (a lot).
Knowing the class helps you write and understand
Knowing a word's class helps you write well. Determiners agree with the noun: «esta casa» (this house), «estas casas» (these houses), «o meu amigo» (my friend, a boy), «a minha amiga» (my friend, a girl). The adverb agrees with nothing: it stays the same. It also helps you understand: «este lápis» and «aquele lápis» are not the same pencil; one is near and the other far.
Classifying the words of two sentences
Let us classify words in two sentences: «O meu amigo comprou dois livros ontem. Aquele livro é muito bonito.» (My friend bought two books yesterday. That book is very nice.) Step 1: ask “whose?”: «meu» is a possessive determiner. Step 2: ask “which one, pointing?”: «aquele» is a demonstrative determiner. Step 3: ask “how many?”: «dois» is a numeral quantifier. Step 4: ask “when?” and “how much?”: «ontem» and «muito» are adverbs.
The adverb never changes
Beware of this mix-up. An adjective changes with the noun: «as meninas são rápidas» (the girls are quick). An adverb does not change: «as meninas correm depressa» (the girls run fast), never «depressas». The same goes for «bem» (well) and «aqui» (here): they stay the same. To settle a doubt, ask which word it goes with: if it describes a noun, it is an adjective; if it tells how, when or where something happens, it is an adverb.
In recipes, signs and stories
You find these words everywhere. In a recipe: «dois ovos» (two eggs), «muito devagar» (very slowly). On a sign: «esta porta» (this door), «aqui não se estaciona» (no parking here). In a story: «o teu casaco» (your coat), «aquele dia» (that day). When you write, choose them with care: one «hoje» (today) or «aqui» (here) more or less changes what the reader understands. Try taking an adverb out of a sentence and see what is lost.
Test what you learned
Which of these words is a possessive determiner (it says whose something is)?
- a) este (este livro)
- b) dois (dois livros)
- c) nossa (a nossa casa)
- d) hoje (hoje à tarde)
Correct answer: c) nossa (a nossa casa) — Yes: «nossa» says whose the house is (ours). It is a possessive determiner.
«Aquelas três maçãs estão ali.» (Those three apples are over there.) What are the classes of «Aquelas», «três» and «ali»?
- a) Demonstrative determiner, numeral quantifier, adverb
- b) Possessive determiner, numeral quantifier, adverb
- c) Demonstrative determiner, adverb, numeral quantifier
- d) Demonstrative determiner, numeral quantifier, adjective
Correct answer: a) Demonstrative determiner, numeral quantifier, adverb — Yes: «aquelas» points, «três» counts and «ali» says where.
Which sentence is correct?
- a) As meninas correm depressas.
- b) As meninas correm depressa.
- c) As meninas correm depressamente.
Correct answer: b) As meninas correm depressa. — Yes: the adverb stays the same, even when the girls are many.
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