Brazilian academic prose does not sound impressive because of fancy vocabulary — it sounds impressive because of a small set of connective and framing formulas that erase the author and place the text in a register of measured, objective scholarship. If you can write a clear sentence in everyday Portuguese, the distance between you and a publishable abstract is mostly a matter of learning these chunks: how to attribute ideas, how to hedge a claim, how to introduce data, and how to make yourself grammatically disappear. This page gives you the toolkit that Brazilian students drill before their first monografia (undergraduate thesis).
The impersonal voice: making the author disappear
The single most important habit in Brazilian academic writing is avoiding "eu". Where an English writer increasingly says "I argue" or "I found," formal Brazilian Portuguese still strongly prefers impersonal constructions. The workhorse is the impersonal "se" attached to a third-person verb, which corresponds to English "one," "it is," or a passive.
Observa-se que os índices de evasão escolar aumentaram na última década.
It is observed that school dropout rates have risen in the last decade.
Conclui-se que a hipótese inicial não se sustenta.
It is concluded that the initial hypothesis does not hold.
Nota-se uma tendência crescente ao uso de energias renováveis.
A growing trend toward the use of renewable energy is noted.
Notice how "observa-se," "conclui-se," and "nota-se" all dodge the question of who observes or concludes. The reader infers it is the author, but the grammar never says so — that detachment is precisely the scholarly effect. (For the full mechanics of this construction, see the page on impersonal sentences.)
Attribution: citing the author
When you report someone else's idea, Brazilian academic writing reaches for a fixed set of attribution formulas. The most common are segundo (according to), de acordo com (in accordance with / according to), and conforme (as / in keeping with).
Segundo o autor, a linguagem molda a percepção da realidade.
According to the author, language shapes the perception of reality.
De acordo com os dados do IBGE, a população urbana superou 84%.
According to IBGE data, the urban population has surpassed 84%.
Conforme apontam estudos recentes, o impacto é cumulativo.
As recent studies point out, the impact is cumulative.
A subtle but important distinction: segundo and de acordo com are nearly interchangeable, but conforme carries a slightly more formal, almost legalistic flavor and is also used to mean "in accordance with" a rule or norm. English collapses all three into "according to," so learners tend to overuse "de acordo com." Vary them.
The verb apontar (to point to/out) and the noun phrase os dados apontam are everywhere in data-driven writing:
Os dados apontam para uma correlação significativa entre renda e escolaridade.
The data point to a significant correlation between income and schooling.
Hedging: claiming carefully
Academic credibility in Portuguese, as in English, comes from not overclaiming. Brazilian writers hedge with a recognizable set of verbs and phrases that signal "this is a tendency, not a certainty": sugerir (to suggest), indicar (to indicate), tender a (to tend to), and the impersonal é possível que / é provável que (which trigger the subjunctive).
Os resultados sugerem que o método é eficaz, embora mais estudos sejam necessários.
The results suggest the method is effective, although more studies are needed.
É possível que fatores externos tenham influenciado a amostra.
It is possible that external factors influenced the sample.
The hedge "embora mais estudos sejam necessários" (although more studies are needed) is so conventional it is almost a closing ritual of Brazilian research papers — and note the subjunctive sejam after "embora."
Framing and emphasis: cabe ressaltar, vale destacar
To flag a point as important without saying "this is important" (too blunt for academic register), Brazilian writers use a family of impersonal verbs of obligation and worth. Cabe ressaltar que (it is worth stressing that), vale destacar (it is worth highlighting), and cumpre observar (it behooves us to note — quite formal) are the classics.
Cabe ressaltar que os dados foram coletados antes da pandemia.
It is worth stressing that the data were collected before the pandemic.
Vale destacar a contribuição teórica desse modelo.
It is worth highlighting the theoretical contribution of this model.
The verb caber here does not mean "to fit"; in the construction cabe + infinitive it means "it is fitting/appropriate to," an impersonal idiom. This is one of those chunks that you simply learn whole — trying to build it from the literal meaning of "caber" will mislead you.
Sourcing and grounding: com base em, a partir de, tendo em vista
These three prepositional formulas anchor your reasoning to evidence and premises:
- com base em — on the basis of, based on
- a partir de — from / starting from / drawing on
- tendo em vista — given / in view of / bearing in mind
Com base nos resultados obtidos, propõe-se uma revisão do modelo.
On the basis of the results obtained, a revision of the model is proposed.
A partir da análise dos dados, identificaram-se três padrões.
From the analysis of the data, three patterns were identified.
Tendo em vista a complexidade do tema, optou-se por um recorte qualitativo.
Given the complexity of the topic, a qualitative scope was chosen.
English speakers chronically translate "based on" word-for-word as "baseado em" at the start of a sentence. In careful Brazilian writing, the floating participle "baseado" should agree with a noun; the cleaner academic choice is the fixed prepositional phrase com base em, which sidesteps agreement entirely.
Logical connectors: the skeleton of an argument
The connective tissue between sentences is what makes prose read as "argued" rather than "listed." Memorize these as a paradigm:
| Portuguese | English | Function |
|---|---|---|
| no entanto / todavia | however / nevertheless | contrast (formal) |
| contudo | nonetheless | contrast (formal) |
| por conseguinte | consequently / therefore | result (formal) |
| portanto | therefore | result (neutral) |
| ademais / além disso | furthermore / moreover | addition |
| no que diz respeito a | with regard to / as for | topic shift |
| em suma / em síntese | in short / in sum | summary |
| por fim | finally / lastly | closing |
No entanto, os achados não permitem generalizações para outras populações.
However, the findings do not allow generalizations to other populations.
No que diz respeito à metodologia, adotou-se uma abordagem mista.
With regard to the methodology, a mixed approach was adopted.
Em suma, o estudo confirma a relevância do fenômeno investigado.
In short, the study confirms the relevance of the phenomenon investigated.
The connector no entanto is preferred over the colloquial mas (but) in formal writing — using "mas" repeatedly in an academic essay reads as conversational. Likewise, por conseguinte is a register-marked upgrade of the neutral portanto; reserve it for genuinely formal prose, where it signals careful logical chaining.
Common Mistakes
❌ Eu acho que os dados mostram um problema.
Incorrect register — 'eu acho que' is conversational, not academic.
✅ Os dados indicam um problema.
The data indicate a problem.
Replacing "eu acho que" (I think that) with an impersonal verb of evidence is the fastest way to lift a sentence into academic register.
❌ Baseado em os resultados, conclui-se que...
Incorrect — 'baseado em os' fails to contract, and 'baseado' is shaky as a sentence opener.
✅ Com base nos resultados, conclui-se que...
On the basis of the results, it is concluded that...
Use the fixed phrase com base em (which contracts to "com base nos") rather than a dangling "baseado."
❌ De acordo com Silva diz que a teoria é falha.
Incorrect — you cannot stack 'de acordo com' and 'diz que'; pick one attribution.
✅ De acordo com Silva, a teoria é falha.
According to Silva, the theory is flawed.
"De acordo com X" already attributes; adding "diz que" doubles the verb of saying. Choose either "Segundo Silva, a teoria é falha" or "Silva afirma que a teoria é falha."
❌ Em conclusão, eu provei que a hipótese está certa.
Incorrect — 'eu provei' and 'está certa' overclaim and break impersonal register.
✅ Em suma, os resultados corroboram a hipótese inicial.
In sum, the results corroborate the initial hypothesis.
Academic writing rarely "proves" (prova); it "corroborates" (corrobora) or "suggests" (sugere). Overclaiming with a first-person verb is a register error and an epistemic one.
❌ Cabe ressaltar que é importante destacar que os dados são relevantes.
Incorrect — stacking two emphasis formulas is redundant padding.
✅ Cabe ressaltar a relevância dos dados.
It is worth stressing the relevance of the data.
One framing formula per idea. Stacking "cabe ressaltar que" + "é importante destacar que" is the classic sign of a student padding word count.
Key Takeaways
- Brazilian academic register runs on impersonal "se" verbs (observa-se, conclui-se, verifica-se) that erase the author.
- Attribute with segundo / de acordo com / conforme; ground claims with com base em / a partir de / tendo em vista.
- Frame importance with cabe ressaltar / vale destacar, but only once per idea.
- Connect arguments with formal connectors (no entanto, por conseguinte, em suma) rather than conversational mas / então.
- Hedge with sugerir, indicar, é possível que — credibility comes from not overclaiming.
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Start learning Portuguese→Related Topics
- Business ExpressionsB2 — The hybrid register of Brazilian corporate Portuguese — fixed politeness formulas mixed with heavy English borrowings.
- Impersonal SentencesB1 — Subjectless sentences in Brazilian Portuguese — weather, time, existence, and the se / 3rd-person-plural / a-gente generics, none of which use a dummy 'it'.
- B2 Text: Academic AbstractB2 — An original Brazilian academic abstract (resumo) annotated to show how impersonal and passive constructions, dense nominalization, and hedging erase the author and pack a study into a few objective sentences.
- Formal vs Informal RegisterA2 — How Brazilian Portuguese chooses between the informal você-default and the formal o senhor / a senhora — by age, hierarchy, service, and intimacy.