Eu vou cortar o pão agora.

I am going to cut the bread now.

Breakdown of Eu vou cortar o pão agora.

• eu: I
• agora: now
• ir: to go (future auxiliary)
• o pão: the bread
• cortar: to cut

Questions & Answers about Eu vou cortar o pão agora.

Why is vou cortar used instead of a simple future form like cortarei?

Brazilian Portuguese very often expresses the near future with ir (present) + infinitive: eu vou cortar = I’m going to cut / I’ll cut.
The simple future cortarei exists but can sound more formal, written, or emphatic. In everyday speech, vou cortar is the default.

Does Eu vou cortar o pão agora mean “right now,” or just “later today”?

With agora (now) it strongly suggests right now / at this moment or immediately next.
If you meant “later today,” you’d more likely add something like daqui a pouco (in a bit) or mais tarde (later): Eu vou cortar o pão mais tarde.

Can I omit eu and just say Vou cortar o pão agora?

Yes—very commonly. Portuguese often drops the subject pronoun when it’s clear from the verb form.
Vou cortar o pão agora sounds natural and is probably what you’d hear most in conversation.

Why is there an article o in o pão? In English we often just say “cut bread.”

Portuguese uses articles more often than English. o pão can mean the bread (a specific loaf) or just the bread relevant in context.
If you want a less specific idea like “some bread,” you can say cortar pão (more general) or cortar um pão (cut a loaf of bread).

What’s the difference between o pão and um pão here?

• o pão = the bread (something known/expected: the loaf on the counter).
• um pão = a bread / a loaf / a roll (one unit, not previously identified).
  So Vou cortar um pão agora sounds like you’re going to cut a (particular) loaf/roll, possibly one you just got.

Is cortar the best verb for “cut” bread, or would Brazilians use something else?

Cortar o pão is perfectly normal.
Depending on what you mean, you might also hear:

• fatiar o pão = slice the bread (emphasis on slices)
• partir o pão = break the bread (more like splitting/tearing; can be more literary or specific)

Where can agora go in the sentence?

Common options are:

• Eu vou cortar o pão agora. (very natural)
• Eu vou cortar agora o pão. (possible, but less common; can sound a bit marked)
• Agora eu vou cortar o pão. (emphasis: Now I’m going to cut the bread)
  The end position is the most neutral.

How do you pronounce vou and pão (nasal sound)?

• vou: typically like voh (often close to vô in casual speech).
• pão: pãw̃—a nasal vowel plus a nasalized glide. Don’t pronounce a clear n; the nasal quality is in the vowel.

Can I use já instead of agora?

Often, yes, but the nuance changes:

• agora = now / at this moment
• já = already / right away / now (as in “let’s do it now”) depending on context
  So Vou cortar o pão já usually means I’ll cut the bread right away.

Why is it vou cortar and not vou a cortar like Spanish voy a cortar?

Portuguese does not normally use a before the infinitive in this construction. The standard pattern is ir + infinitive: vou cortar, vai cortar, vamos cortar, etc.

Could I say Eu irei cortar o pão agora?

Grammatically yes, but it’s less common in everyday Brazilian Portuguese. irei can sound more formal or deliberate. For normal conversation, vou cortar is the natural choice.

If I wanted to say “I’m going to cut it now” (referring to the bread), can I use a pronoun instead of o pão?

Yes. You can use a direct object pronoun:

• Vou cortá-lo agora. (more formal/written)
  In everyday Brazilian speech, many people prefer:
• Vou cortar ele agora. (very common in speech, though prescriptive grammar may dislike it)
  Or they just repeat the noun: Vou cortar o pão agora.