O carregador foi trocado pela técnica.

The charger was replaced by the technician.

Breakdown of O carregador foi trocado pela técnica.

• pela: by
• ser trocado: to be replaced
• o carregador: the charger
• a técnica: the technician

Questions & Answers about O carregador foi trocado pela técnica.

Why does the sentence use foi trocado? What tense/structure is that?

Foi trocado is the passive voice in the simple past (pretérito perfeito):

• foi = past of ser (to be)
• trocado = past participle of trocar (to replace/swap)

So the structure is: ser (past) + past participle = was replaced.

---

How is this different from using estar (e.g., estava trocado)?

In Portuguese, ser + participle is the normal way to form a true passive (focus on the action/event):

• O carregador foi trocado... = The charger was replaced (someone replaced it).

estar + participle usually describes a resulting state/condition, not the replacement event itself:

• O carregador está trocado often sounds like the charger is (already) replaced/swapped (state), and can even sound odd depending on context.

---

Why does trocado end in -o? Could it be trocada?

The past participle agrees in gender and number with the subject in the passive.

• O carregador is masculine singular, so: trocado (masc. sing.)

If the subject were feminine, it would change:

• A bateria foi trocada... (fem. sing.) If plural:
• Os carregadores foram trocados... (masc. pl.)
• As baterias foram trocadas... (fem. pl.)

---

What exactly does pela mean, and why is it used instead of por a?

Pela is a contraction of por + a:

• por a → pela
• por o → pelo
• por as → pelas
• por os → pelos

In passive sentences, por commonly introduces the agent (the doer):

• foi trocado pela técnica = was replaced by the technician.

---

Does pela técnica definitely mean “by the (female) technician”? Could it mean “by the technique/method”?

It can be ambiguous in isolation:

• a técnica can mean the (female) technician (a noun referring to a person)
• a técnica can also mean the technique/method

In real usage, context usually makes it clear. If you want to remove ambiguity:

• For the person: pela técnica Ana, pela técnica de manutenção, or pela técnica responsável
• For the method: pela técnica X, por meio da técnica X, usando a técnica X

---

If the technician is male, how would the sentence change?

You’d change técnica to técnico, and the contraction changes too:

• O carregador foi trocado pelo técnico.
  (pelo = por + o)

---

Can I say the same thing in active voice? What changes?

Yes. Active voice would be:

• A técnica trocou o carregador.

What changes:

• The agent (a técnica) becomes the subject
• The object (o carregador) becomes the direct object
• The passive structure (foi trocado) becomes the simple verb trocou

---

Why is there an article in O carregador and a técnica? Can I omit them?

Portuguese uses articles more often than English. With specific, identifiable things/people, articles are very common:

• O carregador = the charger (a specific one in context)
• a técnica = the technician (a specific one)

You can omit articles in some contexts (headlines, labels, very generic statements), but it often sounds less natural in everyday speech.

---

Does trocar here mean “to change” or “to replace”? Is foi mudado possible?

In this context, trocar is the natural verb for replacing/swapping a part or item:

• trocar o carregador = replace/swap the charger

mudar is more like “change/alter” in a broader sense and usually isn’t the first choice for replacing a component:

• foi mudado would sound odd for “the charger was replaced.”

---

Could I replace pela técnica with something else, like pela assistência técnica?

Yes—depending on what you mean:

• ...pela técnica = by the (female) technician (a person)
• ...pela assistência técnica = by technical support / the service center (an organization/service)
• ...por um técnico = by a technician (non-specific, male or generic “technician”)

Each option changes how specific the “doer” is.

---

How would I pronounce O carregador foi trocado pela técnica (roughly)?

A rough, learner-friendly approximation (Brazilian Portuguese):

• o kah-heh-gah-DOR foy tro-KAH-doo PEH-lah TEK-nee-kah

Notes:

• Final -r in carregador is often a soft h sound in many Brazilian accents.
• Unstressed vowels may sound reduced depending on region.