Eu já comprei remédios na farmácia antes, mas hoje vou procurar algo diferente.

I have already bought medicine at the pharmacy before, but today I will look for something different.

Breakdown of Eu já comprei remédios na farmácia antes, mas hoje vou procurar algo diferente.

• eu: I
• hoje: today
• comprar: to buy
• mas: but

Questions & Answers about Eu já comprei remédios na farmácia antes, mas hoje vou procurar algo diferente.

Why is the word já used together with antes in this sentence?

The word já in Portuguese often emphasizes that an action has occurred at some unspecified point in the past, similar to already in English. Although antes also indicates a past context, using both já and antes puts extra emphasis on the fact that the speaker has previously done this action before. In more casual speech, you might drop antes, but keeping both is perfectly acceptable to stress the idea of having done it already at some point in the past.

Why do we say remédios instead of medicamentos or drogas?

In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, remédios typically refers to any kind of medicine you buy at a pharmacy to treat common ailments. Medicamentos is often used in more formal contexts or official documents, while drogas can include things like illegal drugs, so it’s not usually the best word to describe ordinary medicine you purchase over the counter.

Is there a difference between saying na farmácia and em uma farmácia?