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Ela ainda não chegou.

Ela ainda não chegou.
She has not arrived yet.
FromLesson 11inHardcore Portuguese (Brazil)

Breakdown of Ela ainda não chegou.

não
not
chegar
to arrive
ela
she
ainda
yet

Questions & Answers about Ela ainda não chegou.

What verb tense is chegou, and why is it used for this meaning?
  • Chegou is third-person singular of the Portuguese simple past (pretérito perfeito).
  • In Brazilian Portuguese, to say “hasn’t arrived yet,” you typically use ainda não + pretérito perfeito: (Ela) ainda não chegou.
  • Don’t use the Portuguese present perfect (tem chegado) here; in Portuguese it means “has been arriving” (repeatedly), not “has arrived.”
Where do I put ainda and não? Is não ainda possible?
  • Natural options:
    • Ela ainda não chegou.
    • Ela não chegou ainda.
  • Avoid: Ela não ainda chegou (unnatural).
  • The two natural orders mean the same; the first slightly foregrounds “yet.”
Can I drop the subject pronoun ela?
  • Yes. Portuguese allows null subjects: Ainda não chegou is fine if context makes the subject clear.
  • Without context, it could mean “he/she/it/you (formal) hasn’t arrived.”
How do I express the opposite idea (“already”)?
  • Use já:
  • Don’t use ainda in questions to mean “yet”; prefer já.
Is Ela chegou? different from Ela já chegou?
  • Ela chegou? is a neutral “Did she arrive?/Has she arrived?”
  • Ela já chegou? specifically asks about “yet/already,” implying expectation.
Does ainda mean both “still” and “yet”? How do I say “anymore/no longer”?
  • Ainda:
    • Positive: “still” (e.g., Ela ainda está no trabalho.)
    • With não: “yet” (e.g., Ela ainda não chegou.)
  • “Anymore/no longer”: não … mais
    • Ela não vem mais. = She doesn’t come anymore.
Does chegou agree with feminine ela? What changes with plural?
  • Verbs don’t change for gender. Ele/Ela chegou use the same form.
  • Plural changes the ending:
    • Eles/Elas ainda não chegaram.
    • Nós ainda não chegamos.
Pronunciation tips for the whole sentence?
  • Ela: “EH-lah”
  • ainda: “ah-EEN-dah,” with a slight nasal feel on “in”
  • não: like “now,” but nasalized on ão
  • chegou: “sheh-GOH” (ch = “sh”; final ou like English “oh” with a glide)
Can I use vir instead of chegar?
  • Yes. Ela ainda não veio = “She hasn’t come yet,” focusing on movement toward the speaker.
  • Chegar emphasizes arrival at a place. In many contexts, both are acceptable.
If I add a destination, do I say chegar a or chegar em?
  • In Brazil, everyday speech prefers chegar em: Ela ainda não chegou em casa.
  • More formal/standard: chegar a (with contractions): chegar ao aeroporto, chegar à escola.
  • Both are widely understood in Brazil.
Is Ela ainda não chegou? a normal question? What does it imply?
  • Yes. It’s a question showing surprise/disbelief: “She hasn’t arrived yet?”
  • Neutral yes/no questions usually use já: Ela já chegou?
Why not chegada or chega here?
  • Chegada is a noun (“arrival”), not a verb.
  • Chega is present tense (“arrives”/“is enough”). For “hasn’t arrived yet,” use ainda não chegou.
Can ela mean “it” in this sentence?
  • Yes. Portuguese uses gendered pronouns for things. With a feminine noun (e.g., a encomenda “the package”), Ela ainda não chegou = “It hasn’t arrived yet.”
How do I express this relative to a past moment (past perfect)?
  • Use tinha/havia + participle:
    • Quando saí, ela ainda não tinha/havia chegado. = When I left, she still hadn’t arrived.
Is Ela não chegou acceptable for “She hasn’t arrived”?
  • Yes, in context many speakers use Ela não chegou to mean “She hasn’t arrived (yet).”
  • Adding ainda makes the “yet” explicit and avoids ambiguity.
Common mistakes to avoid with this pattern?
  • Ela não ainda chegou (wrong word order).
  • Ela ainda não tem chegado for a single event (Portuguese present perfect implies repeated/ongoing action).
  • Using mais instead of ainda for “yet” (that means “anymore”: não … mais).
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