A despesa está no relatório.

Because despesa is a feminine singular noun, so it normally takes the feminine singular definite article a when you mean the expense.

In this sentence, a despesa = the expense.

Portuguese uses articles more often than English, so where English might sometimes just say expense, Portuguese often prefers a despesa or uma despesa, depending on the meaning.

Yes. Despesa is a feminine noun, so it goes with feminine words such as:

• a despesa = the expense
• uma despesa = an expense
• essa despesa = that expense
• a despesa alta = the high expense

You usually need to learn the gender together with the noun.

Because estar is used for location.

In A despesa está no relatório, the idea is that the expense is located in the report, so Portuguese uses estar.

A useful shortcut:

• ser = identity, classification, permanent characteristics
• estar = location, condition, temporary states

So:

• Ela é médica. = She is a doctor.
• Ela está em casa. = She is at home.

Here, the expense is in the report, so está is the natural choice.

Está is the third-person singular form of the verb estar in the present tense.

It can mean:

• is
• is located
• is in
• is at

Here it matches a despesa, which is singular:

• A despesa está... = The expense is...

If the subject were plural, the verb would change:

• As despesas estão no relatório. = The expenses are in the report.

The accent in está shows the stressed syllable and is part of the correct spelling.

It also helps distinguish forms in writing. In speech, the stress is on the final syllable: es-TÁ.

So you pronounce it roughly like:

• es-TAH

The accent is not optional.

No means in the.

It is a contraction of:

• em = in
• o = the

So:

• em + o = no

That is why:

• no relatório = in the report

This kind of contraction is very common in Portuguese.

Because standard Portuguese normally contracts em + o into no.

So:

• em o relatório → no relatório

Other common contractions are:

• em + a = na
• em + os = nos
• em + as = nas

Examples:

• na empresa = in the company
• nos arquivos = in the files

Using em o relatório would sound unnatural in normal Portuguese.

Because relatório is a masculine singular noun, so the definite article is o.

That article combines with em to form no:

• o relatório = the report
• em o relatório = in the report
• no relatório = in the report

So the sentence has both a feminine noun and a masculine noun:

• a despesa
• o relatório

The accent in relatório shows where the stress goes: re-la-TÓ-rio.

Without getting too technical, the accent helps you pronounce the word correctly and is part of the standard spelling.

A rough pronunciation for an English speaker is:

• heh-lah-TOH-ree-oh in many Brazilian accents

The exact sound of the initial r can vary by region, but the stressed syllable is TÓ.

Yes. The noun despesa means expense or expenditure, depending on context.

With articles, the meaning changes slightly:

• a despesa = the expense
• uma despesa = an expense
• despesas = expenses

In a real context, a despesa could refer to a specific expense already known from the conversation.

Usually, está no relatório is the most natural choice here.

Ficar can sometimes be used for location, but it often gives a sense like:

• ends up
• is situated
• is located
• remains

For a straightforward statement that something is in a document, estar is the normal verb.

So A despesa está no relatório is the safest and most natural sentence.

Yes, but the basic order subject + verb + location is the most neutral:

• A despesa está no relatório.

You might also hear something like:

• No relatório está a despesa.

But that sounds more marked or literary. For everyday Brazilian Portuguese, the original sentence is the normal way to say it.

A simple pronunciation guide for Brazilian Portuguese is:

• A despesa está no relatório.
• roughly: ah des-PEH-zah es-TAH noo heh-lah-TOH-ree-oh

A few notes:

• despesa stress: PE
• está stress: TÁ
• relatório stress: TÓ
• r at the start of relatório often sounds like an English h in many Brazilian accents

A natural rhythm would be:

• a des-PE-sa es-TÁ no re-la-TÓ-rio

You would change the article, noun, and verb:

• As despesas estão no relatório. = The expenses are in the report.

Changes:

• a → as
• despesa → despesas
• está → estão

No relatório stays the same because relatório is still singular.