Breakdown of Na terça-feira à noite, eu vou responder ao e-mail da empresa.
Questions & Answers about Na terça-feira à noite, eu vou responder ao e-mail da empresa.
Why is it na terça-feira instead of just terça-feira?
Na is the contraction of em + a. With days of the week, Brazilian Portuguese very often uses no/na to mean on:
You can sometimes hear just the weekday by itself in certain contexts, but na terça-feira is a very natural, standard way to say on Tuesday.
Why does terça-feira have a hyphen?
What does à noite mean exactly, and why is there an accent in à?
À noite means at night or in the evening/night, depending on context.
The à has a grave accent because it is a contraction of two a's:
- the preposition a
- the feminine article a
This kind of contraction is called crase.
So:
- à noite = at night / in the evening
- a noite without the accent would usually mean the night as a noun, not the time expression
Why is it à noite, but de manhã and not à manhã?
That is just how these common time expressions work in Portuguese:
- de manhã = in the morning
- à tarde = in the afternoon
- à noite = at night / in the evening
So the pattern is not fully identical for all parts of the day. This is something learners usually just memorize as fixed expressions.
Could I also say de noite instead of à noite?
Yes, you can hear de noite in Brazilian Portuguese, especially in casual speech. But à noite is very common and often feels a bit more neutral or standard in this kind of sentence.
So:
Why is eu included? Isn’t vou enough to show the subject?
Yes, vou already shows that the subject is I, so the sentence could simply be:
Na terça-feira à noite, vou responder ao e-mail da empresa.
Portuguese often drops subject pronouns when the verb form is clear. Adding eu is still completely correct. It can make the sentence feel a little clearer, more explicit, or slightly more emphatic.
How does vou responder work?
Vou responder is the near future construction:
- vou = I go / I am going
- responder = to answer / to reply
Together, vou responder means I am going to answer or I will answer.
This structure, ir + infinitive, is extremely common in Brazilian Portuguese for talking about the future.
A more formal or less conversational alternative would be:
- responderei = I will answer
But in everyday speech, vou responder is much more common.
Why is it responder ao e-mail? Why do we need ao?
The verb responder commonly takes the preposition a when it means to answer or to reply to someone or something.
So:
- responder a algo
- responder a alguém
Since e-mail is masculine and takes o, the combination becomes:
- a + o = ao
So:
- responder ao e-mail = reply to the email
You may also hear some Brazilians say responder o e-mail in informal speech, but responder ao e-mail is the more standard form.
Why is it da empresa?
Da is the contraction of de + a:
- de = of / from
- a = the
So da empresa means of the company or from the company, depending on context.
In this sentence, o e-mail da empresa could mean:
- the company’s email
- the email from the company
The exact meaning comes from context.
Is e-mail always written with a hyphen in Brazilian Portuguese?
Both e-mail and email are seen in Brazilian Portuguese. E-mail has been very common for a long time, but email is also widely used now.
So learners should recognize both:
- o e-mail
- o email
In your sentence, e-mail is perfectly fine.
Could the word order be different?
Yes. Portuguese allows some flexibility here. For example, you could also say:
Eu vou responder ao e-mail da empresa na terça-feira à noite.
This means the same thing. Starting with Na terça-feira à noite simply puts the time first, which is very natural if you want to set the scene first.
The comma after the introductory time expression is also normal and helpful.
Does terça-feira à noite mean Tuesday night or Tuesday evening?
It can mean either Tuesday evening or Tuesday night, depending on the situation. Portuguese noite often covers both what English separates into evening and night.
So na terça-feira à noite is a natural translation for:
- on Tuesday evening
- on Tuesday night
Context tells you which one is more natural in English.
Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor
Start learning PortugueseMaster Portuguese — from Na terça-feira à noite, eu vou responder ao e-mail da empresa to fluency
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
- ✓Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
- ✓Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
- ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions