Ela acabou de receber boas notícias.

She has just received good news.

Breakdown of Ela acabou de receber boas notícias.

• ela: she
• bom: good
• acabar de: to have just
• receber: to receive
• a notícia: the news

Questions & Answers about Ela acabou de receber boas notícias.

What does the construction acabou de + infinitive express?

• It marks a very recent past action, equivalent to English just did something.
• It focuses on recency rather than completion alone.

Why is it receber after acabou de and not a conjugated or -ing form?

• Acabar de must be followed by the infinitive: acabar de + infinitive.
• So you say acabou de receber, not acabou de recebeu or acabou de recebendo.

Can I say Ela acaba de receber boas notícias instead? Any difference?

• Yes. Acaba de (present) also means “has just,” emphasizing immediacy.
• Acabou de (preterite) frames it as a very recent past event. In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, both are common and often interchangeable in meaning.

How do I say “She had just received good news”?

• Ela tinha acabado de receber boas notícias. (common, conversational)
• Ela acabara de receber boas notícias. (literary/formal)

Why is notícias plural? Could I use singular?

• In Portuguese, notícia is countable. You can say either:
  • uma boa notícia = a piece of good news
  • boas notícias = some good news (plural, unspecified amount)
• Both are natural; choose based on whether you mean one item or several.

Why is there no article before boas notícias? Can I say umas boas notícias or as boas notícias?

• Bare plural boas notícias is common for “some good news.”
• Umas boas notícias is possible but less common; it stresses “some.”
• As boas notícias means “the good news” (specific/previously mentioned).

Why does the adjective come before the noun in boas notícias? Is notícias boas also correct?

• Both orders are correct. Boa(s) commonly appears before the noun.
• Pre-nominal placement often sounds more idiomatic or evaluative; post-nominal (notícias boas) is also fine and can feel slightly more neutral/informational.

What agreement is happening in boas notícias?

• Notícias is feminine plural, so the adjective must match: boas (fem. pl.).
• Singular: boa notícia. Masculine examples: bom sinal, bons sinais.

How would I pronounce the sentence naturally in Brazil?

• A common Brazilian rendering: eh-la ah-kah-BOH djee he-seh-BER BO-as no-CHEE-syas.
• Tips:
  • de often sounds like “djee.”
  • Initial/final r in receber tends toward an H-like sound.
  • ti in notícias sounds like “chee.”
  • Stress: a-ca-BOU, rece-BER, no-TÍ-cias.

Can I drop the subject and just say Acabou de receber boas notícias?

• Yes, Portuguese allows subject drop when context makes it clear.
• In Brazilian Portuguese, keeping Ela is also very common, especially to avoid ambiguity.

How do I make this negative or a question?

• Question: Ela acabou de receber boas notícias?
• Negation: Ela não acabou de receber boas notícias.
  • Note: This means “It’s not the case that she just received good news,” not “She just received bad news.” For the latter, say Ela acabou de receber más notícias.

How do I replace boas notícias with a pronoun?

• Standard BP: attach the clitic to the infinitive: Ela acabou de recebê-las.
  • Rule: after an infinitive ending in -r, the verb drops the -r and takes a circumflex if needed; as becomes -las → recebê-las.
• In everyday speech many Brazilians simply omit the object if it’s understood: Ela acabou de receber.

Is receber the best verb here? What about other options?

• Receber works well for news delivered to you (messages, results, calls).
• Alternatives and nuances:
  • ficar sabendo de = to find out about: Ela acabou de ficar sabendo de uma boa notícia.
  • ter when announcing you possess news: Tenho uma boa notícia.
  • ganhar is for gifts/prizes, not news.

Other ways to say “just now” in Brazilian Portuguese?

• agora há pouco: Ela recebeu boas notícias agora há pouco.
• agorinha (mesmo): very colloquial: Ela recebeu boas notícias agorinha.
• neste instante: a bit formal.

Could acabar de mean “to finish doing” here?

• Acabar de + infinitive can mean either “just did” or “finished doing,” depending on context.
• If you specifically mean “finished,” prefer terminar de to avoid ambiguity: Ela terminou de receber…

Why not use the Portuguese present perfect, e.g., Ela tem acabado de receber?

• In Portuguese, ter + particípio usually means repeated/ongoing action: Ela tem recebido boas notícias = “She has been receiving good news.”
• It’s not used for the “has just” meaning; use acabar de + infinitive instead.

Can I use apenas to mean “just (now)”?

• No. Apenas means “only/merely,” not “just now.”
• For temporal “just,” use acabar de or time adverbs like agora há pouco.