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Tomei a vacina ontem, e a injeção doeu um pouco.

Tomei a vacina ontem, e a injeção doeu um pouco.
I got the vaccine yesterday, and the injection hurt a little.
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Questions & Answers about Tomei a vacina ontem, e a injeção doeu um pouco.

Why is it tomei a vacina and not peguei / recebi / fiz?

In Brazilian Portuguese, tomar vacina is the most common everyday collocation meaning “to get a vaccine / get vaccinated.”
Other options exist, but they sound different:

  • receber a vacina = more formal/clinical (“to receive the vaccine”)
  • pegar a vacina = can sound odd/ambiguous (often pegar = “catch” something)
  • fazer a vacina = usually not used (though fazer a vacinação = “carry out vaccination” in an official sense)
Why is it tomei? What tense is that?

Tomei is the pretérito perfeito do indicativo (simple past) of tomar for eu. It’s used for a completed action in the past, similar to English “I took / I got.”
Conjugation: tomar → eu tomei, você tomou, ele/ela tomou, nós tomamos, vocês tomaram, eles/elas tomaram.

Is tomei related to the English word “tome” (a big book)?

No. English tome (book) is unrelated. Portuguese tomar means “to take” in many senses (take medicine, take a shower in some contexts, take action, etc.). Here it’s the idiomatic “get (a shot/vaccine).”

Why is it a vacina (with a)? Do you always need the article?

Portuguese commonly uses definite articles (o/a/os/as) more than English, especially with specific known items. Tomei a vacina sounds like “I took the vaccine (the one I was supposed to take).”
You might also hear:

  • Tomei vacina ontem. = more general (“I got vaccinated yesterday”), common in speech.
Does vacina mean “vaccine” or “vaccination”?

Usually vacina = “vaccine” (the substance / the shot).
But in everyday speech, tomar vacina often functions like “to get vaccinated,” so it can feel like it covers the event too.

Why is it ontem at the end of the first clause?

Portuguese has flexible word order for time expressions. Ontem often goes:

  • at the end: Tomei a vacina ontem.
  • at the beginning for emphasis: Ontem eu tomei a vacina. Both are natural.
What does e do here? Does it always mean “and”?

Yes, e is the normal coordinator “and.” It links two clauses: one about getting the vaccine, and one about the pain afterward. It’s very common to join them this way.

Why is it a injeção if we already said vaccine? Aren’t they the same?

They’re related but not identical:

  • a vacina = the vaccine/shot as the thing you receive
  • a injeção = the injection (the act/needle shot)
    So the sentence is like: “I got the vaccine yesterday, and the injection hurt a bit.”
What’s the difference between injeção and vacina in everyday Brazilian Portuguese?
  • injeção is any injection (painkiller, antibiotic, etc.) and focuses on the method (needle).
  • vacina is specifically a vaccine.
    For vaccines, both may appear in the same story: you take the vaccine, and the injection might hurt.
Why is it doeu and not something like doía?

Doeu is pretérito perfeito of doer (“to hurt”), describing a completed event: it hurt (at that moment).
Doía (imperfect) would suggest an ongoing/recurring past state, like “it used to hurt / it was hurting (for a while).”
Example contrast:

  • A injeção doeu um pouco. = it hurt a bit (at the time)
  • A injeção doía quando eu mexia o braço. = it hurt when I moved my arm (ongoing in that period)
Who/what is the subject of doeu? Why isn’t there a pronoun?

The subject is a injeção. Portuguese doesn’t need a pronoun here because the noun is already present.
Structure: [A injeção] (subject) + doeu (verb) + um pouco (amount).

Why is doer used like this? Isn’t “I hurt” different from “it hurts”?

Portuguese uses doer similarly to English “to hurt” in the sense “X hurts”:

  • Meu braço dói. = My arm hurts.
    So A injeção doeu = The injection hurt (i.e., caused pain).
What does um pouco mean, and where can it go?

um pouco = “a little / a bit.” It commonly follows the verb: doeu um pouco.
You can also move it for emphasis, but this is the most natural position.

Can I say doeu pouco instead of doeu um pouco?

Yes, both exist:

  • doeu um pouco = very common, neutral (“hurt a bit”)
  • doeu pouco = also correct, slightly more direct/compact (“hurt little”)
What’s the pronunciation difference between doeu and dói?
  • doeu (past) is typically pronounced roughly like do-EU (two syllables).
  • dói (present: “hurts”) is one syllable with a stressed vowel: DOI.
Is injeção always feminine? Why?

Yes: a injeção. Nouns ending in -ção are almost always feminine in Portuguese (e.g., a informação, a situação, a vacinação).

Is there any nuance in Tomei a vacina vs Tomei uma vacina?

Yes:

  • Tomei a vacina = “I got the vaccine” (the expected/specific one, like your scheduled shot)
  • Tomei uma vacina = “I got a vaccine” (less specific; could imply “one of the vaccines” or introduce it as new information)
Could you also say Levei uma injeção or Tomei uma injeção?

Yes, both are used:

  • Tomei uma injeção. = I got an injection (very common)
  • Levei uma injeção. = also common in Brazil, slightly more colloquial (“I got stuck with a shot” / “I took a shot”)
    For vaccines specifically, tomei a vacina is the most standard.
Does this sentence sound natural for Brazil, or is it more European Portuguese?
It sounds natural for Brazilian Portuguese. The collocation tomar vacina and the phrasing doeu um pouco are very typical in Brazil.