Contrast markers are what let you push back, qualify, and admit inconvenient truths in Portuguese. They range from the ubiquitous mas (but) that peppers every conversation, through the formal porém, contudo, and no entanto that dominate written Portuguese, to the subjunctive-triggering embora and ainda que that signal literate, educated speech. Getting these right is one of the most important markers of genuine fluency — a learner who can handle embora chova, vou à praia with the correct subjunctive already sounds like someone who reads books.
Beyond vocabulary, contrast connectors in Portuguese come with specific positional rules (mas must be clause-initial; porém can float), register constraints (todavia belongs in novels, not text messages), and mood demands (most concessive connectors require the subjunctive). This page maps them all.
Basic contrast — mas and the everyday set
Mas (but) is by far the most common contrast marker in spoken and informal written Portuguese. It is the direct equivalent of English "but" and behaves the same way: it must come at the start of its clause.
Queria sair, mas está a chover muito.
I wanted to go out, but it's pouring rain.
A camisola é bonita, mas é demasiado cara.
The sweater is pretty, but it's too expensive.
In formal and literary Portuguese, mas gets replaced by one of its fancier cousins: porém, contudo, no entanto, or todavia. All four mean "however" but carry different registers:
| Connector | Register | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| mas | colloquial, neutral | Always clause-initial. Most common. |
| porém | formal written | Can be clause-initial or post-subject. |
| contudo | formal | Slightly stronger than porém. |
| no entanto | semi-formal | Widely used in journalism and speech. |
| todavia | literary/archaic | Rare in modern speech; read in novels. |
| não obstante | academic/legal | Highly formal. Means "notwithstanding." |
O plano parece promissor; porém, há questões orçamentais por resolver.
The plan looks promising; however, there are unresolved budget questions.
A economia cresceu no último trimestre. No entanto, o desemprego continua elevado.
The economy grew last quarter. However, unemployment remains high.
Contudo, é cedo para tirar conclusões definitivas.
That said, it's early to draw definitive conclusions.
Concession — "although, even though, despite"
Portuguese distinguishes sharply between simple contrast (mas, porém) and concession — admitting something that might seem to weaken your claim. The concessive connectors are: embora, ainda que, se bem que, mesmo que, por mais que, and apesar de (que).
All of these except apesar de (+ infinitive/noun) require the subjunctive. This is a hard rule, and one of the most important mood contrasts in Portuguese.
Embora chova, vou à praia.
Even though it's raining, I'm going to the beach.
Ainda que o exame seja difícil, vou tentar.
Even if the exam is difficult, I'm going to try.
Se bem que ele tenha razão, a atitude dele irrita-me.
Although he's right, his attitude annoys me.
Por mais que eu estude, nunca tiro uma nota perfeita.
No matter how much I study, I never get a perfect grade.
Apesar de estar doente, foi trabalhar.
Despite being sick, he went to work.
Note the structure of apesar de: it takes an infinitive (personal infinitive if there's a subject change) or a noun, not a subjunctive clause. However, apesar de que + subjunctive does exist, though it's less common than plain apesar de.
Counter-expectation
Some connectors specifically signal "despite that" — something happened contrary to what you'd expect: no entanto, contudo, apesar disso, mesmo assim, ainda assim, não obstante.
O restaurante é caro; mesmo assim, está sempre cheio.
The restaurant is expensive; even so, it's always packed.
Tentei ligar-lhe várias vezes. Ainda assim, não consegui falar com ele.
I tried to call him several times. Even so, I couldn't get through to him.
Não obstante as críticas, o filme foi um enorme sucesso de bilheteira.
Notwithstanding the criticism, the film was a huge box-office success.
Alternative contrast — paired structures
For laying out two opposing perspectives with equal weight, Portuguese uses paired structures:
- por um lado ... por outro lado — on one hand ... on the other hand
- enquanto — while (contrasting)
- ao passo que — whereas (formal)
- em contraste com — in contrast to
Por um lado, a proposta é interessante; por outro, é demasiado arriscada.
On one hand, the proposal is interesting; on the other, it's too risky.
O norte do país é frio e húmido, ao passo que o sul é quente e seco.
The north of the country is cold and damp, whereas the south is hot and dry.
Enquanto o João gosta de cinema, a irmã prefere teatro.
While João likes cinema, his sister prefers theatre.
Strong contrast — "on the contrary"
When you want to reject a previous claim and assert its opposite, Portuguese uses: pelo contrário, bem pelo contrário, ao contrário.
Ele não estava aborrecido; pelo contrário, estava a divertir-se imenso.
He wasn't bored; on the contrary, he was having a great time.
Não foi um fracasso — bem pelo contrário, foi o maior êxito da carreira dele.
It wasn't a failure — quite the opposite, it was the biggest success of his career.
Ao contrário do que se pensa, a língua portuguesa não é difícil de aprender.
Contrary to what is thought, Portuguese isn't hard to learn.
Position flexibility
One of the most important stylistic points: mas must always start its clause, but porém, contudo, and no entanto are flexible. They can come clause-initially or, more elegantly, after the subject.
| Initial position | Post-subject (more elegant) |
|---|---|
| Porém, ele não veio. | Ele, porém, não veio. |
| Contudo, o projeto falhou. | O projeto, contudo, falhou. |
| No entanto, ninguém reclamou. | Ninguém, no entanto, reclamou. |
The post-subject variant — set off by commas — is considered more polished in formal writing. In speech, the initial position is more common.
Sentence-final mas
A distinctively Portuguese colloquial construction: a sentence that trails off with mas at the end, implying the rest is obvious. English has something similar ("I'd love to, but...").
— Vais à festa? — Queria ir, mas...
— Are you going to the party? — I'd like to, but...
Podíamos ir ao cinema, mas...
We could go to the cinema, but... (implying there's some reason we can't)
This is purely spoken; avoid it in writing.
Apparent vs real contrast
Some connectors flag contrast that's only apparent: aparentemente, à primeira vista, supostamente. These set up a contrast that the speaker is about to overturn.
À primeira vista, parece uma boa ideia — mas há problemas sérios.
At first glance it looks like a good idea — but there are serious problems.
Aparentemente, tudo está bem. Na verdade, a empresa está à beira da falência.
Apparently, everything's fine. In reality, the company is on the brink of bankruptcy.
Register summary
| Register | Typical choices |
|---|---|
| Colloquial speech | mas, apesar de, mesmo assim, ainda assim |
| Neutral writing | mas, no entanto, apesar de, embora |
| Formal writing | porém, contudo, no entanto, embora, ainda que |
| Academic/legal | não obstante, contudo, ao passo que, se bem que |
| Literary | todavia, não obstante, por mais que |
Common mistakes
❌ Embora está a chover, vou à praia.
Wrong — *embora* requires the subjunctive, not the indicative.
✅ Embora esteja a chover, vou à praia.
Even though it's raining, I'm going to the beach.
❌ Ele foi à festa mas, ele não se divertiu.
Wrong — *mas* must be clause-initial; the comma can't separate it from its clause like this.
✅ Ele foi à festa, mas não se divertiu. / Ele foi à festa; porém, não se divertiu.
He went to the party, but didn't enjoy himself.
❌ Apesar que ele é meu amigo, não concordo com ele.
Unusual — *apesar* takes *de* (*apesar de que* is rare).
✅ Apesar de ser meu amigo, não concordo com ele. / Embora seja meu amigo, não concordo com ele.
Although he's my friend, I don't agree with him.
❌ Mas porém, ele não apareceu.
Redundant — *mas* and *porém* both mean 'but'; use one or the other.
✅ Mas ele não apareceu. / Porém, ele não apareceu.
But he didn't show up.
❌ Por mais que ele estuda, nunca passa.
Wrong — *por mais que* requires the subjunctive.
✅ Por mais que ele estude, nunca passa.
No matter how much he studies, he never passes.
Key takeaways
- Mas is the everyday contrast marker; porém, contudo, and no entanto are its formal equivalents.
- The concessive connectors — embora, ainda que, se bem que, mesmo que, por mais que — always trigger the subjunctive.
- Apesar de takes a noun or infinitive; the subjunctive form apesar de que exists but is less common.
- Mas must always be clause-initial; porém, contudo, and no entanto can float to a more elegant post-subject position.
- Match your marker to your register — todavia in a text message sounds stuffy; mas in a legal brief sounds casual.
Related Topics
- Addition MarkersA2 — Connectors for adding information, enumerating, and intensifying — from everyday *também* to formal *além disso* and emphatic *ainda por cima*.
- Cause and Effect MarkersA2 — Connectors for linking causes to consequences — *porque*, *por isso*, *portanto*, and the formal *em virtude de* and *por conseguinte*.
- Concessive Conjunctions (Embora, Ainda que, Mesmo que)B1 — Expressing concession and unexpected outcomes — *embora*, *ainda que*, *mesmo que*, *se bem que*, and the prepositional alternative *apesar de*, all with the subjunctive mood logic explained.
- Sequence MarkersA2 — Words and phrases for ordering events or arguments in time — *primeiro, depois, em seguida, por fim, finalmente* — across everyday speech and formal writing.