Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil): Quando faz frio, eu pego um cobertor grosso e mais um travesseiro. - When it is cold, I grab a thick blanket and one more pillow.

Faz frio is very natural and common in Brazilian Portuguese, especially in casual speech.
Está frio focuses a bit more on the current state (“it is cold right now”), while Faz frio feels more like a general description of the weather.

In this sentence, Quando faz frio…, the speaker is talking about what they do whenever it’s cold, so faz frio works very well as a generic weather expression.

Why is there no word for “it” in Quando faz frio?

Portuguese often drops the subject when it’s obvious, and weather expressions are usually impersonal, meaning there is no real subject like “it”.

In English, we must say “it’s cold”.
In Portuguese, you just say:

Faz frio. (literally “Makes cold.”)
Chove. = “It’s raining.”
Nevou ontem. = “It snowed yesterday.”

There is no “it” word here; the verb itself carries the meaning. That’s why the sentence is simply Quando faz frio, not Quando ele faz frio or something similar.

Why is there a comma after Quando faz frio?

In Portuguese, when a dependent clause (like a time clause introduced by quando) comes before the main clause, it is normally separated by a comma:

Quando faz frio, eu pego um cobertor grosso…
Se chover, eu fico em casa.
Quando eu chego tarde, janto rápido.

If the quando-clause comes after the main clause, the comma is usually omitted:

Eu pego um cobertor grosso quando faz frio.

So the comma here is just normal punctuation for a clause that comes first.

Why is the verb pegar used in eu pego um cobertor grosso? What exactly does pegar mean here?

The verb pegar is very flexible in Brazilian Portuguese. Its basic idea is “to take / to grab / to pick up”. In this sentence:

Eu pego um cobertor grosso ≈ “I get a thick blanket” / “I grab a thick blanket.”

Common similar uses:

Vou pegar um casaco. = I’m going to get a coat.
Pega um copo pra mim? = Can you get me a glass?
Peguei um resfriado. = I caught a cold.

You could also say:

Eu pego um cobertor grosso
Eu pego um cobertor grosso pra me cobrir. (…to cover myself.)
Eu pego um cobertor grosso e um travesseiro.

But pegar is very natural for “taking” physical objects you’re about to use.

Why is it um cobertor grosso and not um grosso cobertor?

In Portuguese, adjectives usually come after the noun:

um cobertor grosso = “a thick blanket”
um carro novo = “a new car”
uma casa bonita = “a beautiful house”

Putting grosso before the noun (um grosso cobertor) is unusual and sounds poetic or marked, not neutral everyday speech.

So the normal word order is:

noun + adjective → cobertor grosso

What’s the difference between cobertor and other words like manta?

In Brazilian Portuguese:

Cobertor: a blanket used on the bed to keep you warm, often thicker and heavier.
Manta: can be a lighter blanket or throw, sometimes used on the couch, or a decorative throw.

In daily speech about going to bed when it’s cold, cobertor is the most natural word. Saying um cobertor grosso clearly suggests a warm, thick bed blanket.

Why is it mais um travesseiro instead of just um travesseiro or outro travesseiro?

Each option has a slightly different nuance:

um travesseiro = “a pillow” (no clear idea if it’s additional or the only one)
mais um travesseiro = “one more pillow” / “an extra pillow”
outro travesseiro = “another pillow” (often contrasts with a specific one you already have)

In mais um travesseiro, mais emphasizes that this is in addition to what the person already uses. It implies:

They already have at least one pillow.
When it’s cold, they get one more.

So the sentence paints the picture: when it’s cold, they grab a thick blanket and an extra pillow.

What exactly does travesseiro mean, and how is it different from almofada?

In Brazilian Portuguese:

Travesseiro: the pillow you sleep on in bed, under your head.
Almofada: a cushion, usually decorative or used on sofas, chairs, etc.

So for bedtime:

Eu durmo com dois travesseiros. = I sleep with two pillows.

On the couch:

O sofá tem várias almofadas. = The couch has several cushions.

In this sentence, mais um travesseiro clearly refers to another sleeping pillow.

Why is the subject eu included? Could you just say Quando faz frio, pego um cobertor…?

Yes, you could omit eu:

Quando faz frio, pego um cobertor grosso e mais um travesseiro.

In Portuguese, subject pronouns (eu, você, ele, ela, nós, vocês, eles, elas) are often dropped because the verb ending already shows who the subject is:

pego → only matches eu (I).

Including eu is still perfectly correct and can:

Make things a bit clearer for learners.
Add a tiny bit of emphasis: I get a thick blanket (not someone else).

But grammatically, both are fine.

Why is the present tense used (faz, pego) even though this could refer to future situations?

Portuguese often uses the simple present to describe:

Habits / routines
- Quando faz frio, eu pego um cobertor grosso…
  = Whenever it’s cold (in general), I get a thick blanket…
General truths
- Quando chove, as ruas alagam. = When it rains, the streets flood.

Even when talking about future situations in general, the present is normal in quando-clauses:

Quando eu chegar, te ligo. = When I arrive, I’ll call you.
Quando faz frio, eu pego um cobertor grosso. = Whenever it’s cold, I get a thick blanket.

So the present tense here expresses a habitual action, not just “right now”.

Could you say Quando está frio instead of Quando faz frio? Is there a difference in meaning?

Yes, you can say:

Quando está frio, eu pego um cobertor grosso e mais um travesseiro.

Meaning-wise, it’s practically the same as Quando faz frio. Differences:

Faz frio is an idiomatic weather expression, very common in Brazilian Portuguese.
Está frio emphasizes the current state (“it is cold”).

In this kind of habitual sentence, both are natural. You’d hear both forms in Brazil. The original just happens to use the very common faz frio expression.

Why are cobertor and travesseiro preceded by um and not o?

The article um/uma is indefinite (“a / one”), and o/a is definite (“the”).

Here:

um cobertor grosso = a thick blanket (not a particular, already-known one)
mais um travesseiro = one more pillow (again, not a specific named pillow)

The speaker is describing what they typically do in that situation, not referring to a specific, previously mentioned blanket/pillow. If they meant very specific, known ones, they might say:

Quando faz frio, eu pego o cobertor grosso e o travesseiro extra.
= When it’s cold, I get the thick blanket and the extra pillow (the specific ones we both know about).

Using um keeps it general and habitual.