Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil): Eu preciso lavar a roupa hoje antes de estudar. - I need to wash the clothes today before studying.

In European Portuguese, “precisar de + infinitive” is much more common (“Eu preciso de lavar a roupa”), which can confuse learners. For Brazilian Portuguese, stick with:

precisar + infinitive
precisar de + noun/pronoun

What’s the difference between “eu preciso lavar a roupa” and “eu tenho que lavar a roupa”?

Both usually translate as “I need to / I have to wash the clothes.”

Nuance in Brazilian Portuguese:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa.
– Focus on need (practical, personal, or physical need).
Eu tenho que lavar a roupa.
– Focus on obligation / duty (“I must / I have to”).

In everyday conversation, people often use them almost interchangeably, but “tenho que” can sound a bit stronger or more like an obligation.

Why is it “a roupa” and not “roupas” here?

In Portuguese, roupa (singular) can be a collective noun, meaning clothes / laundry in general:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa. – I need to wash the laundry / the clothes.

You can also say “as roupas”, but that usually emphasizes separate items or a more concrete list:

Eu preciso lavar as roupas das crianças. – I need to wash the children’s clothes (their specific clothes).

In this sentence, “a roupa” is like English “the laundry” (an uncountable, general idea of clothing to wash).

Can you also say “Eu preciso lavar roupa hoje” without the article “a”?

Yes. Both are used in Brazilian Portuguese:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa hoje.
Eu preciso lavar roupa hoje.

Nuance:

“lavar a roupa” – slightly more specific: the clothes/the laundry you have in mind.
“lavar roupa” – more generic or habitual: wash clothes (in general), do laundry as an activity.

In casual speech, many Brazilians often drop the article and say “lavar roupa” when they mean “do laundry.”

Does “roupa” mean “clothes” or “laundry”?

It can mean both, depending on context:

clothes (what you wear):
- Eu comprei roupa nova. – I bought new clothes.
laundry (clothes to be washed):
- Eu preciso lavar a roupa. – I need to do the laundry.

English separates “clothes” (what you wear) and “laundry” (the washing task), but Portuguese often uses roupa for both ideas.

Why is the verb “lavar” not reflexive here (why not “me lavar”)?

Because you’re washing the clothes, not yourself.

Eu preciso lavar a roupa. – I need to wash the clothes / do the laundry.
Eu preciso me lavar. – I need to wash myself / take a shower.

In Portuguese, the verb lavar is only reflexive (lavar-se) if the direct object is the same person as the subject:

Eu me lavo. – I wash myself.
Eu lavo a roupa. – I wash the clothes.

Why is it “antes de estudar” and not just “antes estudar”?

In Portuguese, when a preposition like antes comes before a verb in the infinitive, you must include de:

antes de + infinitive
- antes de estudar – before studying
- antes de dormir – before sleeping
- antes de sair – before leaving

So “antes estudar” is incorrect. You need “antes de estudar.”

Why not say “antes que eu estude” instead of “antes de estudar”?

You can say it, but the structure and nuance change:

Antes de estudar, eu preciso lavar a roupa.
– antes de + infinitive; subject is understood from context (same as “I”).
Antes que eu estude, eu preciso lavar a roupa.
– antes que + subjunctive; more formal, more typical of written or careful speech.

In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, “antes de + infinitive” is by far the most common way to express “before doing something” when the subject is the same.

Why is “estudar” in the infinitive and not “eu estudo”?

Because after antes de, you need the infinitive form of the verb:

antes de estudar – before studying
antes de trabalhar – before working

If you want a full clause with a conjugated verb, you need a different structure:

Antes que eu estude, eu preciso lavar a roupa. (subjunctive)
Antes de eu estudar, eu preciso lavar a roupa. (infinitive with explicit subject “eu”)

But the simple, most natural version in speech is:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa hoje antes de estudar.

Can the subject “eu” be dropped? For example, is “Preciso lavar a roupa hoje antes de estudar” correct?

Yes, it’s correct and very natural.

Portuguese is a pro-drop language, so the subject pronoun is often omitted when the verb form already shows who the subject is:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa hoje antes de estudar.
Preciso lavar a roupa hoje antes de estudar.

Both are fine. Including “eu” can add a bit more emphasis on “I”, but grammatically both are correct.

Can “hoje” go in a different place, like at the beginning of the sentence?

Yes. Common options include:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa hoje antes de estudar.
Hoje eu preciso lavar a roupa antes de estudar.
Eu preciso hoje lavar a roupa antes de estudar. (less common, slightly more formal/emphatic)

All are grammatically correct.
The most natural in everyday speech are usually:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa hoje antes de estudar.
Hoje eu preciso lavar a roupa antes de estudar.

Is “lavar a roupa” always about laundry, or can it mean something else?

Literally, “lavar a roupa” is about washing clothes / doing laundry.

However, in some idiomatic expressions, it can be metaphorical. For example:

lavar roupa suja – literally “to wash dirty clothes,” but idiomatically:
- “falar francamente sobre problemas pessoais em particular”
- like “air out dirty laundry” (often in private).

In your sentence, though, it has the literal, everyday meaning: doing the laundry.

Is the tense “preciso” (present) being used like English “I have to” for the future?

Yes. In Portuguese, the present tense often expresses a near-future necessity or plan, especially with a time expression like hoje:

Eu preciso lavar a roupa hoje.
– I need to / I have to wash the clothes today (later today, not right now).

So using “preciso” in the present is the normal way to talk about a future obligation happening today. You don’t need a special future tense here.