Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil): Paulo nunca bebe café depois do jantar.

In Portuguese, nunca is a negative adverb meaning “never,” and it alone makes the statement negative. You don’t need the particle não as well—using não nunca would be redundant and ungrammatical. So Paulo nunca bebe café depois do jantar = “Paulo never drinks coffee after dinner.”

Why is nunca placed before the verb bebe and not after it?

Adverbs of frequency (sempre, nunca, geralmente) customarily come before the main verb in Portuguese. Placing nunca directly before bebe highlights the frequency (or lack thereof) of the action. Saying bebe nunca is understandable but uncommon and stylistically marked.

What tense is bebe, and why is that used here?

Bebe is the simple present tense (3rd person singular) of beber (“to drink”). In Portuguese, the simple present often expresses habitual actions: “He never drinks coffee after dinner.” You don’t need a continuous tense if you’re describing routines.

Why is the pronoun ele omitted in Paulo nunca bebe…?

Portuguese is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns are optional because the verb ending already indicates the person and number. You include ele only for emphasis or to avoid ambiguity. Here, Paulo makes the subject clear.

Could I say Paulo não bebe café depois do jantar instead?

Yes, Paulo não bebe café depois do jantar is grammatically fine and means “Paulo doesn’t drink coffee after dinner.” However, it doesn’t carry quite the same force of “never.” Using nunca explicitly stresses that he at no time will drink it after dinner.

What does depois de mean, and how does it work here?

Depois de is a compound preposition meaning “after.” It’s followed by a noun or infinitive:
– depois de + o jantar (a noun) → depois do jantar
– depois de + jantar (the infinitive) → depois de jantar
Both are correct; including the article (o) is more common in spoken Brazilian Portuguese.

Why is it depois do jantar instead of depois da jantar?

Because jantar is a masculine noun (o jantar). The preposition de + article o contracts to do. If it were a feminine noun (e.g., a aula), you’d say depois da aula.

Can I use após instead of depois de?

Yes. Após o jantar is a bit more formal or literary and also means “after dinner.” You still contract de + o, but with após you don’t need a preposition:
– após o jantar
– após jantar (less common)

Why is café written with an accent on the é?

In Portuguese, words stressed on the final syllable that end in -e, -o, or -em require an acute accent to mark the stress. Without the accent, you wouldn’t know where to stress it: café (ca-FÉ) vs. a nonexistent cafe (CÁ-fe).

Could I use tomar instead of beber for “drink coffee”?

Yes! Tomar café is very common in Brazilian Portuguese and sounds more idiomatic in casual speech. Beber café is correct and emphasizes the act of “drinking,” but tomar is often preferred with beverages (and with medications).