Nós sempre caminhamos devagar na cidade bonita.

We always walk slowly in the beautiful city.

Breakdown of Nós sempre caminhamos devagar na cidade bonita.

• caminhar: to walk
• na: in
• bonito: beautiful
• nós: we
• sempre: always
• devagar: slowly
• cidade: the city

Questions & Answers about Nós sempre caminhamos devagar na cidade bonita.

Why is Nós used here instead of A gente?

In Brazilian Portuguese, Nós and A gente both mean "we" in English. However, Nós is more formal and always uses the first-person plural verb conjugation (such as caminhamos). A gente is more informal and typically uses the third-person singular conjugation (for example, you would say A gente caminha instead of A gente caminhamos).

Can I leave out Nós at the start of the sentence?

Yes, you can. In Portuguese, the subject pronoun often gets dropped because the verb ending indicates the subject. So you could say Sempre caminhamos devagar na cidade bonita, and people would still understand that you mean we.

Why do we say caminhamos instead of something else like andamos?

Both caminhar and andar can mean "to walk" in Portuguese. However, caminhar is often used more specifically for walking in a somewhat leisurely or intentional manner, while andar can have the broader sense of "to go" by walking. In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, you might hear either verb, but caminhar places a bit more emphasis on the act of walking itself.

Why do we place devagar after caminhamos?

Devagar is an adverb meaning "slowly", and in Portuguese, adverbs commonly follow the verb. If you put devagar elsewhere (for example, before the verb), it can sound more formal or poetic. So Nós sempre caminhamos devagar is the most natural everyday phrasing.

How does na cidade bonita work in terms of gender and number?

Na is a contraction of em + a, meaning "in the" (feminine). Cidade is feminine in Portuguese, so it uses the article a (singular). Bonita is the feminine singular adjective describing a feminine singular noun (cidade). If it were a masculine noun, you might see no (in the) and bonito, for example no bairro bonito.