O mercado fica perto da casa.

The market is near the house.

Breakdown of O mercado fica perto da casa.

• a casa: the house
• o mercado: the market
• perto: near
• da: of the

Questions & Answers about O mercado fica perto da casa.

Why is fica used here instead of é or está?

In Portuguese, ficar often indicates location or position (similar to "is located" in English). É and está can mean "is," but ficar specifically focuses on where something is situated, making it the best choice in this context.

What does perto da mean grammatically?

Perto de means "near" or "close to." Here, da is the contraction of de + a ("of" + "the"). So perto da means "near the."

Could we say O mercado fica perto de casa instead of da casa?

Yes. O mercado fica perto de casa is also grammatically acceptable. The difference is subtle: da casa refers more specifically to "the house," while de casa can sound slightly more indefinite, but both forms are commonly used.

Why do we say o mercado instead of um mercado?

When you use o mercado, you’re referring to a specific market that both you and the listener might already know or have in mind. Um mercado would be more generic, referring to "a market" without specifying which one.

Can ficar be conjugated similarly to other regular -ar verbs?

Yes. Ficar is a regular -ar verb in most forms. For example, in the present tense:
• Eu fico
• Você/Ele/Ela fica
• Nós ficamos
• Vocês/Eles/Elas ficam
Its conjugation patterns follow the usual rules for regular -ar verbs in Portuguese.