Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil): Este bolo é delicioso.

ser (é) is used for more inherent or characteristic qualities, things seen as part of what something is.
estar (está) is used for temporary states or conditions.

In Este bolo é delicioso, the speaker is describing the cake as having the general quality of being delicious (as a characteristic of this cake).

You could say:

Este bolo está delicioso.

This usually emphasizes that right now, as you taste it, it is delicious (a current state), even if it might not always be so. Both are possible; é sounds a bit more general or evaluative, está more “at this moment.”

Why is it delicioso and not deliciosa?

In Portuguese, adjectives agree with the gender and number of the noun:

bolo is masculine singular.
Therefore the adjective must also be masculine singular: delicioso.

If the noun were feminine, you’d use deliciosa:

Esta torta é deliciosa. – This pie is delicious.
(torta is feminine.)

If it were plural:

Estes bolos são deliciosos. – These cakes are delicious.
Estas tortas são deliciosas. – These pies are delicious.

How would the sentence change in the plural, for These cakes are delicious?

You need to pluralize este, bolo, and delicioso, and change é (singular) to são (plural):

Este bolo é delicioso. – This cake is delicious.
Estes bolos são deliciosos. – These cakes are delicious.

Changes:

este → estes
bolo → bolos
é → são
delicioso → deliciosos

What is este exactly? Is it an adjective or a pronoun here?

In Este bolo é delicioso, este is a demonstrative adjective (also called a demonstrative determiner), because it comes before a noun (bolo) and modifies it:

este (this) + bolo (cake) → este bolo (this cake)

If este stood alone, replacing the noun, it would be a demonstrative pronoun:

Este é delicioso. – This one is delicious.
(Here este = this (cake), and the noun is understood from context.)

What’s the difference between este bolo and esse bolo?

Traditionally (in prescriptive grammar):

este = this (near the speaker)
esse = that (near the listener)
aquele = that (over there) (far from both)

So:

Este bolo – this cake (near me, the speaker)
Esse bolo – that cake (near you, the listener)
Aquele bolo – that cake over there (away from both of us)

In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, people often use esse for both this and that, especially in speech. But este is still common in writing and is good to learn.

In your sentence, Este bolo é delicioso sounds natural and a bit more “textbook correct.”
Colloquially, many Brazilians might say Esse bolo é delicioso with almost the same meaning.

Why is there no article like o or um before bolo?

When you use a demonstrative like este, you usually don’t add a separate article:

Este bolo – this cake
Esse bolo – that cake
Aquele bolo – that cake over there

You would not say Este o bolo or Este um bolo.

If you want a delicious cake (not “this cake”), you’d say:

Este é um bolo delicioso. – This is a delicious cake.
Esse é um bolo delicioso. – That is a delicious cake.

What’s the difference between Este bolo é delicioso and Este é um bolo delicioso?

They’re close in meaning, but the focus is slightly different:

Este bolo é delicioso.
This cake is delicious.
→ You’re directly describing this specific cake that we’re looking at/eating.
Este é um bolo delicioso.
This is a delicious cake.
→ You’re identifying “this” as a delicious cake; it sounds a bit more like a general judgment or introduction (“This is a delicious cake!”).

Both are correct. The first sounds more like a straightforward description of the cake; the second highlights “this thing here is a (type of) delicious cake.”

Can the adjective go before the noun, like in English this delicious cake?

Yes, but the meaning and focus can change a bit.

Este bolo delicioso é caro. – This delicious cake is expensive.
Here delicioso comes after bolo, which is the default position for adjectives in Portuguese.

If you move the adjective before the noun:

Este delicioso bolo é caro.

This is grammatically correct but sounds more poetic, emphatic, or literary. It highlights delicioso more strongly.

Your simple sentence Este bolo é delicioso must keep the order:

Este bolo é delicioso.
You cannot say Este delicioso é bolo or Este bolo delicioso é to mean the same thing.

Could I say Este bolo está delicioso? What’s the nuance?

Yes, you can, and it’s very natural.

Este bolo é delicioso.
Suggests deliciousness as a general quality of this cake.
Este bolo está delicioso.
Emphasizes that right now, as we taste it, the cake is delicious — a current state, maybe because it’s fresh, still warm, etc.

In practice:

Both are used.
Está delicioso often sounds like you’re reacting while eating: “Wow, this is delicious right now.”

Is gostoso the same as delicioso? Could I say Este bolo é gostoso?

Yes, you can say:

Este bolo é gostoso.

gostoso = tasty / yummy
delicioso = delicious

Nuance:

gostoso is very common, informal, and used all the time in Brazil for food.
delicioso feels a bit stronger or more expressive, sometimes a touch more formal or enthusiastic.

Both are positive. For everyday speech, gostoso may even be more frequent than delicioso.

How do you pronounce Este bolo é delicioso in Brazilian Portuguese?

Approximate pronunciation (General Brazilian):

Este ≈ EH‑shchee or EH‑stee (varies by region)
bolo ≈ BOH‑lu
é ≈ EH (open “e”)
delicioso ≈ deh‑lee‑SYOH‑zu

Put together:

Este bolo é delicioso. ≈ EH‑shchee BOH‑lu EH deh‑lee‑SYOH‑zu

Key points:

The s in delicioso (between vowels) sounds like z.
The stress in delicioso is on “cio”: de‑li‑ciO‑so (SYOH).
Final o in bolo and delicioso is a closed “o” sound, not like English oh with a diphthong.

Why does é have an accent?

The accent in é serves two main purposes:

It shows the stress (this syllable is stressed).
It indicates the vowel quality: an open “e” sound (like in English bet), not the closed “ê” sound.

Also, it distinguishes:

é – (he/she/it) is from ser (present tense, 3rd singular)
e – and (the conjunction, no accent)

So é = is, while e = and.

Is bolo always “cake,” or does it have other uses?

The main and most common meaning of bolo is cake.

It can have some informal or figurative uses, for example:

levar um bolo – literally “to receive a cake,” but idiomatically means to be stood up (someone doesn’t show up for a meeting/date).
In some contexts, bolo can mean a lump / mass / clump of something (like a ball of paper or clothes), but that’s less common in everyday speech compared to “cake.”

In your sentence, it’s clearly cake.

How do I make the sentence negative, like This cake is not delicious?

To make it negative, place não before the verb é:

Este bolo é delicioso. – This cake is delicious.
Este bolo não é delicioso. – This cake is not delicious.

Pattern: [subject] + não + [verb] + [rest of sentence].

How can I turn it into an exclamation, like This cake is so delicious!?

Two natural options:

Just use an exclamation mark and intonation:
- Este bolo é delicioso! – This cake is delicious!
Use que
- adjective, very common in exclamations:
- Que bolo delicioso! – What a delicious cake!
- Como este bolo é delicioso! – Literally How this cake is delicious!, used like How delicious this cake is! in English.

All of these sound natural in Brazilian Portuguese.