A gente pode tentar entender o que o cachorro quer agora?

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Breakdown of A gente pode tentar entender o que o cachorro quer agora?

• agora: now
• querer: to want
• poder: to be able to
• cachorro: dog
• a gente: we
• tentar: to try
• entender: to understand
• o que: what

Questions & Answers about A gente pode tentar entender o que o cachorro quer agora?

Why do we use a gente instead of nós in this sentence?

In Brazilian Portuguese, a gente is an informal way to express “we.” Even though it literally means “the people,” it’s treated as a third-person singular subject in terms of verb conjugation (like ele/ela). In contrast, nós is the standard first-person plural pronoun. Using a gente makes the sentence sound more casual and conversational.

Why do we say pode tentar (third-person singular) if a gente means “we”?

Because a gente takes the third-person singular conjugation. Grammatically, a gente is treated like “he/she/it” (ele/ela). That’s why you see pode tentar instead of podemos tentar:
• A gente pode tentar (we can try)
• Nós podemos tentar (we can try)

What does o cachorro mean?

O cachorro means “the dog.” O is the masculine definite article (“the”), and cachorro is the word for “dog.” Portuguese nouns have gender, so cachorro is a masculine noun.

Is it typical to use entender in this context?

Yes. Entender means “to understand,” so tentar entender is a very natural way to say “try to understand” in Portuguese. It works well when talking about figuring out what the dog wants or needs.

Why do you have agora at the end of the sentence?

Agora means “now.” Placing it at the end of the question emphasizes that you want to figure out the dog’s desire at this moment. You could also say agora earlier in the sentence, but ending with agora? helps stress the immediacy of the situation.