Questions & Answers about Este travesseiro é macio.
What does este mean, and how is it different from esse and aquele?
Este is a demonstrative adjective meaning this (masculine, singular), referring to something close to the speaker.
Standard rule in Portuguese:
- este / esta / estes / estas: this / these – close to the speaker
- esse / essa / esses / essas: that / those – close to the listener or just mentioned
- aquele / aquela / aqueles / aquelas: that / those over there – far from both speaker and listener
In Este travesseiro é macio, este is saying this pillow (near me).
But in Brazilian Portuguese, don’t people often use esse instead of este?
Yes. In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, esse is extremely common and often used where grammar books would prefer este.
So in speech you will frequently hear:
- Esse travesseiro é macio.
In most contexts in Brazil, este and esse here will be understood the same way. Este just sounds a bit more “bookish” or careful, but it’s perfectly correct.
Why is travesseiro masculine, and how do I know the gender of nouns like this?