O limpador de para-brisa não funciona.

O is the masculine singular definite article, meaning the.

It is used because limpador is a masculine singular noun:

• o limpador = the wiper / the cleaner

In Portuguese, nouns usually need an article more often than in English, especially in normal statements like this one.

Because limpador is a masculine noun.

Here, limpador does not mean a male person who cleans. It refers to the object: the windshield wiper. The noun for this object is conventionally masculine, so it takes:

• o limpador

If you were talking about a female cleaner as a person, then limpadora could be used in some contexts.

It literally comes from the verb limpar, meaning to clean.

So limpador is basically:

• cleaner
• cleaning device
• in this sentence, wiper

In car-related language, limpador de para-brisa means windshield wiper.

The structure noun + de + noun is very common in Portuguese and often works like English compound nouns.

So:

• limpador de para-brisa = literally cleaner/wiper of windshield
• natural English meaning: windshield wiper

Portuguese often uses de where English puts one noun directly before another:

• motor de carro = car engine
• porta de vidro = glass door
• escova de dente = toothbrush

So de is the normal way to connect the two nouns here.

In expressions like this, Portuguese often keeps the second noun in the singular after de when it describes the type or function of something.

So:

• limpador de para-brisa = windshield wiper
• not necessarily wiper of one windshield in a literal counting sense

This is similar to patterns like:

• escova de dente = toothbrush
• sala de aula = classroom

Even though English may suggest something different, singular after de is very normal in Portuguese in this kind of category label.

Para-brisa is a compound noun. The hyphen shows that it is treated as one unit.

Literally, it comes from the idea of something that stops wind:

• para = stops
• brisa = breeze / wind

As a fixed compound, it means windshield.

So in this sentence:

• limpador de para-brisa = windshield wiper

In Portuguese, the normal way to negate a verb is to put não directly before it.

So:

• funciona = works / is working
• não funciona = doesn’t work / isn’t working

This is the standard negation pattern:

• Eu sei = I know
• Eu não sei = I don’t know
• Ele abre = He opens
• Ele não abre = He doesn’t open

Because the subject is singular:

• o limpador = the wiper

So the verb must also be singular:

• o limpador funciona
• o limpador não funciona

If the subject were plural, then the verb would be plural too:

• os limpadores não funcionam = the wipers don’t work

This is standard subject-verb agreement.

It can mean both, but in everyday English, works is usually the best translation.

So:

• funciona = works / functions / is working

In practical speech:

• O rádio funciona. = The radio works.
• A tomada não funciona. = The outlet doesn’t work.

So não funciona is a very common way to say that something is not operating properly.

Portuguese often uses the simple present in cases where English might use either:

• doesn’t work or
• isn’t working

So:

• O limpador de para-brisa não funciona.

could mean:

• The windshield wiper doesn’t work or
• The windshield wiper isn’t working

If you want to be more explicitly progressive in Portuguese, you could say:

• O limpador de para-brisa não está funcionando.

But the simple present is very natural and common.

Usually, o limpador de para-brisa is understood as the windshield wiper in a general practical sense. Depending on context, it may refer to:

• one specific wiper blade/mechanism
• the wiper system as a whole

In everyday speech, people are often not being technically precise. They just mean that the windshield wiper is not working properly.

If you wanted to be clearly plural, you could say:

• Os limpadores de para-brisa não funcionam. = The windshield wipers don’t work.

Yes, it is a very natural and common term in Brazilian Portuguese.

You may also hear related expressions depending on region or context, but limpador de para-brisa is standard and widely understood.

In casual conversation, native speakers may shorten or vary car-related vocabulary, but this phrase is completely normal and correct.

The written sentence is already natural, but in speech you might hear slight variations such as:

• O limpador do para-brisa não funciona.
• O para-brisa não tá funcionando if someone is being less precise and speaking casually
• O limpador não tá funcionando. if the context already makes clear what part of the car is being discussed

A very common spoken alternative is:

• não tá funcionando instead of não funciona

But the original sentence is perfectly standard and natural.