Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil): Ele lê o jornal todas as manhãs para ver as notícias. - He reads the newspaper every morning to see the news.

Ler is the infinitive: ler (to read), pronounced roughly like "ler" in English layer but shorter.
Ele lê is the present tense: he reads.

Pronunciation of lê:

Close to "leh" (like let but with a slightly more closed e).
Stress is on this syllable: LÊ is the only syllable anyway, but in longer forms like eles lêem, the accent still marks the stressed vowel.

The accent also distinguishes it from forms without an accent in writing (e.g. le would not be a valid verb form here).

Why is it ele lê o jornal instead of just ele lê jornal?

In Portuguese, it is very common – and often more natural – to use the definite article with singular countable nouns, especially with things that are specific or known from context.

Ele lê o jornal = He reads the newspaper.
Suggests a specific newspaper or newspapers in general as a category, like a habitual thing.
Ele lê jornal (without o) is possible but sounds less natural here; it might feel more like he reads newspaper as a type of thing (vague or stylistic).

In habitual actions like this, using o jornal is the default and sounds most idiomatic in Brazilian Portuguese.

Why is it todas as manhãs and not something like todo manhã?

Because manhã (morning) is a feminine noun, and in this sentence it is plural.

manhã = morning (feminine singular)
manhãs = mornings (feminine plural)

So you need:

Feminine plural for todo → todas
Feminine plural article for a → as

Therefore:

todas as manhãs = literally all the mornings → idiomatically every morning.

Todo manhã is wrong because:

todo (masculine) does not match manhã (feminine),
and it is singular while the noun here is plural.

Can I also say toda manhã instead of todas as manhãs? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say both, and both are correct:

Ele lê o jornal toda manhã.
Ele lê o jornal todas as manhãs.

Meaning: both = He reads the newspaper every morning.

Nuance:

toda manhã (singular, no article) is a bit shorter and more informal sounding.
todas as manhãs (plural with article) is slightly more formal or explicit, like each and every morning / all the mornings.

In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, both are very common and natural.

Why do we use the present tense ele lê instead of something like ele está lendo?

In Portuguese, the simple present is often used for:

habitual actions,
routines,
general truths.

So:

Ele lê o jornal todas as manhãs = He reads the newspaper every morning (habit).

Ele está lendo o jornal would mean:

He is reading the newspaper (right now).

So:

For routines → use simple present: ele lê.
For an action in progress, at this moment → present continuous: ele está lendo.

Why is it para ver and not something like para vê or para vê-lo?

Ver is the infinitive form of the verb to see.

In Portuguese:

After para when you are expressing purpose (in order to), the verb stays in the infinitive:
- para ver = to see
- para comer = to eat
- para estudar = to study

So:

para ver as notícias = to see the news.

Vê is a conjugated form:

ele vê = he sees.

You would not say para vê as notícias; that is grammatically incorrect.

Para vê-lo could be used in a different context:

para vê-lo = to see him / to see it (masculine object), but that does not fit the meaning of to see the news here.

Why do we say as notícias (plural with article) instead of the news as a singular word like in English?

In English, news is an uncountable noun and has no plural form.

In Portuguese:

a notícia = a piece of news, a news item (singular, feminine)
as notícias = the news, news items (plural, feminine)

So:

as notícias literally: the news items.
Functionally: it just means the news, like in English.

The article as is normally used:

ver as notícias
ler as notícias Removing the article (ver notícias) is possible but sounds more general or indefinite; ver as notícias feels more like see/check the news (the normal, expected news).

Could the sentence be Ele lê o jornal todas as manhãs para ver notícias, without as? How does that change the meaning?

Yes, that is grammatically correct:

Ele lê o jornal todas as manhãs para ver notícias.

Subtle difference:

para ver as notícias: more specific/definite, like the regular, expected news (today’s news, what’s in the paper).
para ver notícias: more general or indefinite, like to see (some) news; it feels slightly less specific.

In this context (reading the paper every morning), ver as notícias is more idiomatic.

Why is jornal used for newspaper, if notícias already means news?

They refer to different things:

o jornal:
- the physical newspaper, or the newspaper as a publication.
- In Brazil, it can also refer to a TV news program (o jornal da noite = the evening news show).
as notícias:
- the actual information, the news items or stories.

So the sentence structure is:

He reads the newspaper (the medium)
to see the news (the content).

This distinction is similar to English:

He reads the paper to see the news.

How do you pronounce manhãs? The nh and ã are confusing.

Manhãs is pronounced approximately like ma-NYANS (with a nasal sound).

Breakdown:

ma-: like ma in mama.
nh: similar to ny in canyon or the Spanish ñ in mañana.
ã: a nasal vowel; there is no exact English equivalent, but you can think of an in French sans.
Final -s: in Brazilian Portuguese often sounds like /s/ or /z/ depending on region; in many accents here it will sound close to /s/: manhãs ≈ ma-NHYANS.

So:

manhã ≈ ma-NHYAN (nasal at the end),
manhãs ≈ ma-NHYANS.

Could I say de manhã instead of todas as manhãs? Does it change the meaning?

Yes, you can:

Ele lê o jornal de manhã.

Meaning:

de manhã = in the morning / in the mornings.

Differences:

todas as manhãs = every morning (emphasizes the regularity: daily habit).
de manhã = generally in the morning, but not necessarily every single morning (though in context it often will be a routine).

So todas as manhãs is stronger on the idea of every day, while de manhã is broader and slightly less precise.

Is the word order fixed, or could I move phrases around? For example, can I say Ele, todas as manhãs, lê o jornal?

Portuguese word order is fairly flexible, especially for adverbial expressions like time phrases.

All of these are possible and correct (with small changes in emphasis):

Ele lê o jornal todas as manhãs para ver as notícias.
(Neutral, standard.)
Todas as manhãs, ele lê o jornal para ver as notícias.
(Emphasizes every morning.)
Ele, todas as manhãs, lê o jornal para ver as notícias.
(Also acceptable; a bit more marked or literary in tone.)
Ele lê, todas as manhãs, o jornal para ver as notícias.
(Still understandable; different rhythm and emphasis.)

The most natural everyday version is the original one or starting with Todas as manhãs.

How would this sentence sound in more casual, spoken Brazilian Portuguese?

In informal speech, Brazilians often:

Reduce para to pra.
Sometimes drop or weaken final -s sounds, depending on the region.
Shorten or smooth the sentence.

Very natural informal version:

Ele lê o jornal toda manhã pra ver as notícias. or
Ele lê jornal todo dia de manhã pra ver as notícias.

People might also use assiste ao jornal if they are talking about a TV news program instead of a physical newspaper:

Ele assiste ao jornal toda manhã pra ver as notícias.