Academic Expressions | Portuguese (Portugal) Grammar

Portuguese academic prose is a register of its own — recognisably different from conversation, newspaper writing, and even formal business correspondence. Its distinguishing features are heavy nominalisation (turning verbs into nouns: a análise, o estudo, a problematização), impersonal and passive constructions (verifica-se, afirma-se, argumenta-se), complex subordination, and a characteristic use of the subjunctive in hedging and qualifying clauses. Learners who master only conversational Portuguese find academic text opaque; learners who learn academic formulas without the conversational layer find themselves unable to speak naturally. Both registers must be acquired.

This page is a toolkit of formulas for academic writing: phrases for introducing topics, stating theses, citing authors, presenting evidence, contrasting positions, qualifying claims, concluding arguments, and hedging. The goal is that by the end of it you could open a Portuguese essay and recognise every connective, and open your own draft and pick an appropriate formula for each turn in the argument.

The academic register in one paragraph

Portuguese academic writing differs from ordinary prose in four ways. First, it nominalises heavily: where a journalist writes A economia caiu, a scholar writes Observa-se uma queda da economia. Second, it prefers impersonal constructions: verifica-se, constata-se, argumenta-se, often with the indefinite pronoun se. Third, it hedges more: tende a, afigura-se, parece que, pode considerar-se que. Fourth, it uses the subjunctive in clauses of hypothesis, concession, and desirability that colloquial speech often flattens to indicative. The combined effect is a careful, distanced, cautious prose — the register of someone advancing a claim while visibly weighing it.

💡

Academic Portuguese rewards grammatical patience. The conversational shortcut (o autor diz que) is technically correct but tonally off; the academic register prefers segundo o autor, na perspetiva do autor, o autor argumenta que — a richer inventory with finer distinctions.

1. Introducing a topic

The opening sentences of a Portuguese essay or paper signal the subject and purpose. A small set of formulas covers most needs.

Formula	Function
O presente trabalho/artigo/ensaio propõe...	introducing the whole piece
A finalidade deste estudo é...	stating purpose
O objetivo deste trabalho é...	stating goal
No presente texto analisarei...	first-person version
Pretende-se com este artigo...	impersonal intention
Este trabalho visa...	"aims to" — compact
Neste ensaio, abordarei...	first-person, more literary

O presente artigo propõe uma leitura comparativa da obra de Pessoa e Sá-Carneiro.

The present article proposes a comparative reading of the work of Pessoa and Sá-Carneiro.

A finalidade deste estudo é analisar o impacto da crise de 2008 sobre o emprego juvenil em Portugal.

The purpose of this study is to analyse the impact of the 2008 crisis on youth employment in Portugal.

Pretende-se com este trabalho identificar os fatores que explicam a variação regional.

This work seeks to identify the factors that explain regional variation.

Neste ensaio, argumentarei que a categoria de 'modernidade' é insuficiente para descrever o fenómeno.

In this essay, I shall argue that the category of 'modernity' is insufficient to describe the phenomenon.

Notice two tendencies. First, Portuguese academic writing uses first-person singular futures (analisarei, argumentarei, discutirei) where English often uses the present or the modal will. Second, impersonal se constructions (pretende-se, verifica-se, observa-se) sit alongside first-person forms — both are acceptable, and most writers alternate for texture.

2. Thesis statements

Having introduced the topic, you state your position. PT-PT offers several frames with subtle differences.

Defendo a tese de que a literatura oral medieval antecipa traços do romance moderno.

I defend the thesis that medieval oral literature anticipates traits of the modern novel.

Sustentarei neste ensaio que a reforma de 1974 foi tanto política quanto cultural.

I shall sustain in this essay that the 1974 reform was as much cultural as political.

Argumenta-se que os indicadores económicos tradicionais subavaliam o impacto ambiental.

It is argued that traditional economic indicators underestimate environmental impact.

A minha posição é que a autoridade do texto depende do contexto de receção.

My position is that the authority of the text depends on the context of reception.

Defender uma tese ("to defend a thesis") is the standard academic idiom. Sustentar ("to sustain") is slightly more emphatic — you are holding the claim up against anticipated objections. Argumenta-se que (impersonal) has the effect of presenting a claim as already circulating rather than as your personal innovation; use it when the position is debated among scholars, not when you are being original.

3. Referring to authors

How you introduce another scholar's claim matters more than learners often realise. The inventory:

Formula	Stance toward the author
Segundo (autor)	neutral reporting
Conforme refere (autor)	neutral, slightly more formal
De acordo com (autor)	neutral, often implies agreement
Na perspetiva de (autor)	framing as one view among possible
(Autor) argumenta que	reporting an argument
(Autor) defende que	reporting a position
(Autor) sustenta que	reporting a strongly-held position
(Autor) contesta que	reporting an objection
(Autor) nega que + subjunctive	reporting a denial

Segundo Eduardo Lourenço, a identidade portuguesa constrói-se sobre uma nostalgia fundadora.

According to Eduardo Lourenço, Portuguese identity is built on a founding nostalgia.

Na perspetiva de Boaventura de Sousa Santos, as epistemologias do Sul desafiam o cânone europeu.

In Boaventura de Sousa Santos's perspective, the epistemologies of the South challenge the European canon.

O autor defende que a revolução de 1974 deve ser lida como fenómeno cultural antes de o ser como político.

The author argues that the 1974 revolution must be read as a cultural phenomenon before a political one.

Saraiva contesta a tese de uma continuidade ininterrupta entre a Idade Média e o Renascimento português.

Saraiva contests the thesis of an unbroken continuity between the Middle Ages and the Portuguese Renaissance.

A subtle point: verbs of denial and doubt trigger the subjunctive in the complement clause. Nega que seja, duvida que tenha acontecido. This is one place the subjunctive survives intact in modern PT-PT academic writing.

O autor nega que a reforma tenha produzido os efeitos esperados.

The author denies that the reform produced the expected effects.

4. Presenting evidence

Academic prose constantly shifts between claim and evidence. The evidence-introducing formulas:

Formula	Strength
Os dados mostram que...	strong, empirical
A pesquisa revelou que...	strong, research-based
Verifica-se que...	impersonal, observational
Observa-se que...	impersonal, slightly less strong
Constata-se que...	"it is noted that" — well-established
É notório que...	"it is evident that" — strong
Cumpre salientar que...	"it must be emphasised that"
Importa sublinhar que...	"it is important to underline that"

Os dados mostram uma queda de 12% no consumo entre 2019 e 2023.

The data show a 12% drop in consumption between 2019 and 2023.

Verifica-se, em todos os grupos etários, uma preferência crescente por formatos digitais.

A growing preference for digital formats is observed across all age groups.

Cumpre salientar que a amostra é regionalmente enviesada.

It must be emphasised that the sample is regionally biased.

Importa sublinhar que os resultados são provisórios.

It is important to underline that the results are provisional.

The verbs cumprir and importar used impersonally (cumpre + infinitive, importa + infinitive) are distinctively academic. In conversation you would say é importante dizer que; in a paper you would write cumpre salientar que or importa sublinhar que. These formulas mark the prose as self-consciously careful.

5. Comparing and contrasting

Academic argument often proceeds by juxtaposition. The PT-PT inventory:

Connector	Meaning
Por outro lado,...	"On the other hand,"
Por contraste,...	"By contrast,"
Ao contrário de...	"Unlike..."
Enquanto (que)...	"While, whereas..."
Em contrapartida,...	"By contrast, conversely"
Pelo contrário,...	"On the contrary,"
Diferentemente de...	"Differently from..."
À semelhança de...	"Like, similar to..."
Tal como...	"Just as..."

Enquanto que no norte a taxa de desemprego permaneceu estável, no sul observou-se um aumento significativo.

While in the north the unemployment rate remained stable, in the south a significant increase was observed.

À semelhança do que sucede noutros países europeus, Portugal regista uma queda da natalidade.

Similar to what occurs in other European countries, Portugal registers a falling birth rate.

Em contrapartida, o setor turístico cresceu 18% no mesmo período.

By contrast, the tourism sector grew by 18% in the same period.

Pelo contrário, os autores mais recentes rejeitam esta leitura.

On the contrary, more recent authors reject this reading.

Enquanto que is the standard contrastive conjunction in academic writing; in conversation you'd hear just enquanto, but the formal version with que is slightly more elevated.

6. Qualifying claims

A mark of academic Portuguese is reluctance to make unqualified claims. Qualifying formulas soften statements and acknowledge exceptions.

Na sua maioria, os inquiridos manifestaram preferência pela opção A.

For the most part, respondents expressed a preference for option A.

Em termos gerais, pode afirmar-se que a política atingiu os objetivos propostos.

In general terms, it can be stated that the policy achieved its proposed goals.

De um modo geral, os resultados são positivos, embora haja exceções importantes.

Generally speaking, the results are positive, though there are important exceptions.

Em princípio, o modelo é aplicável a outros contextos culturais.

In principle, the model is applicable to other cultural contexts.

Sob certas condições, a hipótese pode ser testada experimentalmente.

Under certain conditions, the hypothesis can be tested experimentally.

Com algumas reservas, concordo com a análise do autor.

With some reservations, I agree with the author's analysis.

Em relação a este ponto, a literatura é inconclusiva.

Regarding this point, the literature is inconclusive.

The semantic work these phrases do is crucial: they create space between the author and the claim. Academic writing that lacks this hedging language sounds dogmatic.

7. Concluding

The conclusion of an essay or section uses a distinct cluster of formulas.

Conclusion formula	Use
Em conclusão,...	standard essay closer
Concluindo,...	more active "to conclude"
Em suma,...	"in sum" — compact
Em síntese,...	"in synthesis"
Em última análise,...	"in the final analysis"
Pode concluir-se que...	impersonal conclusion
Depreende-se que...	"it follows that" — inference
Verifica-se, portanto, que...	"it is therefore seen that"
Tendo em conta o exposto,...	"given the above,"
Em face do exposto,...	"in view of the above,"

Em conclusão, os dados aqui apresentados confirmam parcialmente a hipótese inicial.

In conclusion, the data presented here partially confirm the initial hypothesis.

Em suma, o modelo tradicional revela-se insuficiente para explicar o fenómeno.

In sum, the traditional model proves insufficient to explain the phenomenon.

Depreende-se, portanto, que a variável cultural tem peso decisivo.

It follows, therefore, that the cultural variable has decisive weight.

Em face do exposto, recomenda-se a revisão das diretrizes em vigor.

In view of the above, a revision of current guidelines is recommended.

8. Hedging — the academic subjunctive

Portuguese academic writing hedges more than English academic writing, and a significant part of that hedging is grammatical: the subjunctive mood, combined with verbs and phrases of uncertainty, allows the writer to float a claim without fully endorsing it.

Hedge	Grammatical note
tende a + infinitive	"tends to" — weak claim
pode considerar-se que...	"it may be considered that..."
é plausível que + subjunctive	"it is plausible that..."
afigura-se que + indicative/subjunctive	"it appears that..."
parece que + indicative	"it seems that..."
sugere-se que + subjunctive	"it is suggested that..."
é possível que + subjunctive	"it is possible that..."

A literatura tende a subestimar o papel das redes informais de apoio.

The literature tends to underestimate the role of informal support networks.

É plausível que a correlação observada tenha causas múltiplas.

It is plausible that the observed correlation has multiple causes.

Afigura-se necessário aprofundar a investigação em futuros trabalhos.

It appears necessary to deepen the investigation in future work.

Sugere-se que novos dados sejam recolhidos no próximo quinquénio.

It is suggested that new data be collected in the next five years.

The forms tenha causas, sejam recolhidos are present subjunctives. Their role is to mark the subordinate clause as contingent, hypothetical, or desired — not asserted as fact. This is the grammatical core of academic hedging.

For a fuller treatment of the subjunctive, see the subjunctive overview; what matters here is that academic register uses it more systematically than conversation does.

9. Citations

Standard Portuguese academic citation style (adapted from APA, MLA, or Chicago per discipline) uses compact in-text formulas.

Citation element	Meaning
(Autor, Ano: página)	standard in-text citation
Apud	"cited in" — when citing a source you found in another work
Cf.	conferre — "compare, see also"
Op. cit.	opere citato — "work already cited"
Ibid. / Ibidem	"in the same place" (same source as previous)
Idem	"same (author)"

(Lourenço, 1988: 42)

(Lourenço, 1988, p. 42)

Weber apud Sousa Santos (2004) argumenta que...

Weber, as cited in Sousa Santos (2004), argues that...

Cf. Saraiva (1972) para uma discussão detalhada.

Cf. Saraiva (1972) for a detailed discussion.

Portuguese academic writing uses these Latin abbreviations more liberally than modern English writing, which increasingly spells them out.

10. Transitions within arguments

Finally, the connective tissue that holds paragraphs and sentences together.

Transition	Function
Por seu turno,...	"in turn, for its part"
Por sua vez,...	"in its/his/her turn"
Posto isto,...	"this being said,"
Deste modo,...	"in this way,"
Assim,...	"thus, so"
Com efeito,...	"in effect, indeed"
De facto,...	"in fact, indeed"
A saber,...	"namely, to wit"
Ou seja,...	"that is, in other words"
Isto é,...	"that is (to say),"
Nomeadamente,...	"notably, specifically"

O primeiro argumento baseia-se em dados quantitativos. Por seu turno, o segundo recorre a análise documental.

The first argument is based on quantitative data. In turn, the second draws on documentary analysis.

Com efeito, o modelo proposto explica com sucesso os casos em estudo.

Indeed, the proposed model successfully explains the cases under study.

A amostra é regionalmente enviesada, ou seja, sobrerrepresenta o litoral.

The sample is regionally biased, that is, it overrepresents the coast.

Várias reformas foram propostas, nomeadamente a reestruturação do sistema de saúde.

Several reforms were proposed, notably the restructuring of the health system.

A small but telling register note: PT-PT writes de facto, not de fato (Brazilian spelling). The difference is a single letter but a clear identifier of which variety the writer learned.

The nominalisation habit

A recurring feature of academic Portuguese is nominalisation — converting verbs into abstract nouns. Where conversation says os preços aumentaram ("prices went up"), a paper says observa-se um aumento dos preços ("an increase in prices is observed"). This is not mere stylistic fussiness: nominalisation lets the writer treat processes as objects, count them, compare them, and relate them to other nominalisations.

Verb form	Nominalised form
analisar (to analyse)	a análise
discutir (to discuss)	a discussão
problematizar (to problematise)	a problematização
questionar (to question)	o questionamento
interpretar (to interpret)	a interpretação
abordar (to approach)	a abordagem
propor (to propose)	a proposta
desenvolver (to develop)	o desenvolvimento

A análise dos dados revelou padrões inesperados.

The analysis of the data revealed unexpected patterns.

A problematização do conceito é central para a tese.

The problematisation of the concept is central to the thesis.

A abordagem qualitativa permite uma interpretação mais fina dos fenómenos.

The qualitative approach allows a finer interpretation of the phenomena.

The cost of nominalisation is opacity: overly nominalised prose becomes ponderous and hard to follow. Good academic writers alternate — they nominalise where it sharpens the argument and use plain verbs where nominalisation would obscure.

Common mistakes

❌ O autor diz que a economia é ruim.

✅ O autor argumenta que a economia é deficitária.

The author argues that the economy is deficient.

❌ Em fato, os dados mostram um aumento.

Incorrect PT-PT — 'em fato' is Brazilian (and a mistake anyway). PT-PT = 'de facto'.

✅ De facto, os dados mostram um aumento.

Indeed, the data show an increase.

❌ É possível que os resultados são positivos.

'É possível que' requires the subjunctive: 'sejam'.

✅ É possível que os resultados sejam positivos.

It is possible that the results are positive.

❌ Segundo autor, a teoria está incorreta.

Missing article before 'autor' — PT-PT requires 'o autor'.

✅ Segundo o autor, a teoria está incorreta.

According to the author, the theory is incorrect.

❌ Concluindo que o modelo funciona, este trabalho propõe...

Dangling gerund. PT-PT academic prose avoids this Anglo-style construction.

✅ Conclui-se que o modelo funciona. Este trabalho propõe, portanto,...

It is concluded that the model works. This work therefore proposes...

The dominant error patterns for learners are: (a) register mismatch — using conversational vocabulary (dizer, ruim, coisa) where academic equivalents exist (afirmar, deficitário, elemento); (b) omitting articles — Portuguese loves the definite article in academic subject positions (o autor, a teoria, os dados); (c) missing the subjunctive after hedging verbs and "it is ... that" phrases; and (d) importing English gerund constructions (dangling -ing forms) that PT-PT syntax doesn't accept.

Key takeaways

💡

Academic PT-PT is a register you acquire separately from conversation. Its core habits are nominalisation, impersonal se constructions, subjunctive hedging, Latinate connectors (posto isto, em face do exposto), and first-person futures (analisarei, argumentarei). Picking up the formulas on this page gives you the scaffolding to read and write at that level.

💡

A single reliable test for your draft: read every main-clause verb. If they are all verbs of saying (digo, digo, digo) or all conversational (achar, querer, gostar), your register is wrong. Academic prose alternates among argumenta, sustenta, defende, contesta, observa-se, verifica-se, constata-se, afigura-se — a much richer verbal palette.