A alga cresce no cascalho.

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Breakdown of A alga cresce no cascalho.

• crescer: to grow
• a alga: the alga
• o cascalho: the aquarium gravel

Questions & Answers about A alga cresce no cascalho.

Why does the sentence start with a?

A is the feminine singular definite article, meaning the.

So a alga = the algae / the seaweed / the alga, depending on context.

Portuguese uses articles more often than English does. In a sentence like this, using a sounds natural.

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Why is it a alga and not uma alga?

A alga means the alga or can also be used in a general, class-level sense, like algae as a kind of living thing.

Uma alga would mean an alga / one alga, introducing it less specifically.

So:

• A alga cresce no cascalho. = The alga grows in/on the gravel or Algae grows in gravel in a general statement
• Uma alga cresce no cascalho. = An alga is growing in/on the gravel

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Is alga feminine? How can I tell?

Yes, alga is feminine, which is why it takes a.

In Portuguese, nouns have grammatical gender. Often nouns ending in -a are feminine, and alga is one of them.

That is why you get:

• a alga
• not o alga

Its plural is as algas.

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What does cresce mean, and why is it in that form?