O adversário distribui as cartas de jogo.

O is the masculine singular definite article, meaning the.

It matches adversário, which is a masculine singular noun:

• o adversário = the opponent

Portuguese uses definite articles more often than English, so where English might sometimes just say opponent, Portuguese often says o adversário.

Adversário usually means opponent or rival, especially in games, sports, or competitions.

It does not usually mean a personal enemy in the strong emotional sense. So in this sentence, adversário is the person playing against you.

A few related words:

• adversário = opponent, rival
• oponente = opponent
• inimigo = enemy

In a game context, adversário sounds very natural.

Distribuir is the infinitive, meaning to distribute or to deal.

In the sentence, the verb is conjugated:

• distribui = he/she distributes, he/she deals

This is the present tense, third person singular, because the subject is o adversário.

A quick comparison:

• eu distribuo = I distribute
• você distribui = you distribute
• ele/ela distribui = he/she distributes
• o adversário distribui = the opponent distributes

In card-game English, deal is more natural, but Portuguese often uses distribuir in this kind of sentence.

Yes, it is grammatically present tense, but like many present-tense forms, it can be translated in different ways depending on context:

• The opponent deals the cards
• The opponent is dealing the cards
• The opponent deals cards / deals the playing cards

Portuguese simple present can express:

• a general fact
• a habitual action
• an action happening now, depending on context

So the exact English translation may vary.

As is the feminine plural definite article, meaning the.

So:

• as cartas = the cards

Portuguese often uses articles in places where English may or may not use them. In this sentence, as cartas refers to a specific set of cards, so the cards is natural.

Also, carta is a feminine noun:

• a carta = the card / the letter
• as cartas = the cards / the letters

Because carta is grammatically a feminine noun in Portuguese.

That is why it takes feminine articles and adjectives:

• a carta
• as cartas

Grammatical gender in Portuguese is a property of the noun itself. It does not mean the object is biologically female; it is just part of the grammar.

De jogo literally means of game or for play/game.

So cartas de jogo means playing cards or game cards.

It helps clarify that these are cards used in a game, not:

• cartas = letters
• other kinds of cards

So:

• cartas de jogo = playing cards

It is understandable and grammatical, but in everyday Brazilian Portuguese, people often say simply:

• as cartas if the game context is already clear
• cartas de baralho = playing cards, cards from a deck
• o baralho = the deck

So this sentence is fine, but in many real-life situations you might also hear:

• O adversário distribui as cartas.
• O adversário distribui as cartas de baralho.

Yes. Even though distribuir literally means to distribute, it can be used in contexts where English would say to deal cards.

In natural game-related Portuguese, you may also hear:

• dar as cartas = to deal the cards
• distribuir as cartas = to distribute/deal the cards

So distribui works well here.

Yes. The word order is very normal:

• O adversário = subject
• distribui = verb
• as cartas de jogo = object

So it follows the common pattern: Subject + Verb + Object

That is the most neutral and straightforward order in Portuguese, just like in English.

A simple pronunciation guide:

• adversário ≈ ahd-vehr-SAH-ryoo
• distribui ≈ jees-tree-BOO-ee in many Brazilian accents

A few useful notes:

• In Brazilian Portuguese, di before i often sounds like jee
• The stress in adversário falls on sá
• distribui is stressed on the final i sound group: bui

The accent mark in adversário shows the stress clearly.

The accent mark in adversário shows where the stress goes:

• ad-ver-SÁ-rio

Without getting too deep into spelling rules, the accent helps indicate the correct pronunciation.

Accent marks in Portuguese are important because they can:

• show stress
• sometimes distinguish between words
• help with pronunciation

So you should always write adversário, not adversario.

Yes, you usually can.

• O adversário distribui as cartas de jogo.
• O oponente distribui as cartas de jogo.

Both are understandable and correct. The difference is mostly one of style and preference:

• adversário often feels very natural in sports and games
• oponente is also correct and common, sometimes a bit more formal or technical

In many contexts, either one works.

The verb must agree with the subject.

Examples:

• A adversária distribui as cartas de jogo.
  = The female opponent deals the playing cards.

• Os adversários distribuem as cartas de jogo.
  = The opponents deal the playing cards.

• As adversárias distribuem as cartas de jogo.
  = The female opponents deal the playing cards.

Notice:

• singular: distribui
• plural: distribuem