A funcionária vai entregar o relatório ao gerente amanhã.

Questions & Answers about A funcionária vai entregar o relatório ao gerente amanhã.

Why are there articles in a funcionária, o relatório, and o gerente?

Portuguese uses definite articles very often, more often than English does.

In this sentence, a funcionária, o relatório, and o gerente all sound like specific, identifiable people/things: the employee, the report, the manager.

A native English speaker might be tempted to drop the articles, but in Portuguese that usually sounds less natural here. So:

  • a funcionária = the employee
  • o relatório = the report
  • o gerente = the manager
Why is it funcionária and not funcionário?

Because funcionária is the feminine form and refers to a female employee.

  • o funcionário = a male employee
  • a funcionária = a female employee

Portuguese nouns and articles usually show grammatical gender, so the article changes too:

  • a funcionária
  • o funcionário
What does vai entregar mean grammatically?

Vai entregar is the very common ir + infinitive future structure in Portuguese. It literally looks like goes to deliver, but it usually means is going to deliver or simply will deliver.

So:

Together, vai entregar expresses a future action.

This is one of the most common ways to talk about the future in Brazilian Portuguese.

Could this also be entregará instead of vai entregar?

Yes. A funcionária entregará o relatório ao gerente amanhã is also correct.

The difference is mainly style and tone:

  • vai entregar = very common, natural, conversational
  • entregará = simple future; correct, but often sounds more formal, written, or official

In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, vai entregar is usually the more common choice.

Why is it ao gerente? What does ao mean?

Ao is a contraction of:

So:

  • a + o = ao

Here, ao gerente means to the manager.

This happens because the verb entregar often follows the pattern entregar algo a alguém = to deliver something to someone.

So:

  • o relatório = the thing being delivered
  • ao gerente = the person receiving it
Could I say para o gerente instead of ao gerente?

Yes, in Brazilian Portuguese, para o gerente is very common and natural.

So both are possible:

  • A funcionária vai entregar o relatório ao gerente amanhã.
  • A funcionária vai entregar o relatório para o gerente amanhã.

A useful difference to remember is:

  • ao gerente often sounds a bit more standard, compact, or written
  • para o gerente often sounds a bit more conversational

In everyday speech in Brazil, para is extremely common.

Why is o relatório after entregar?

Because o relatório is the direct object of the verb entregar. It is the thing being delivered.

The basic pattern is:

someone + delivers + something + to someone

So in Portuguese:

  • A funcionária = the subject
  • vai entregar = the verb phrase
  • o relatório = the thing delivered
  • ao gerente = the receiver

This word order is very normal and natural in Portuguese.

Can amanhã go in another position?

Yes. Amanhã is flexible.

These are all natural:

  • A funcionária vai entregar o relatório ao gerente amanhã.
  • Amanhã, a funcionária vai entregar o relatório ao gerente.
  • A funcionária amanhã vai entregar o relatório ao gerente.

The version with amanhã at the end is very common and neutral. Putting amanhã at the beginning can give it a little more emphasis, like Tomorrow, the employee will deliver the report to the manager.

Can Portuguese leave out the subject here?

Sometimes, yes, but in Brazilian Portuguese people often keep the subject clearer than in European Portuguese.

For example, if the context already makes it obvious who you mean, you might hear:

  • Vai entregar o relatório ao gerente amanhã.

But by itself, that can sound less clear, because vai could refer to he, she, or you (você), depending on context.

So in Brazilian Portuguese, using a funcionária or ela is often helpful:

  • Ela vai entregar o relatório ao gerente amanhã.
How would I replace o relatório with a pronoun?

You can replace o relatório with the direct object pronoun o, but the form changes because it comes after an infinitive ending in -r.

Entregar + o becomes entregá-lo.

So:

  • A funcionária vai entregar o relatório ao gerente amanhã.
  • A funcionária vai entregá-lo ao gerente amanhã.

What happens is:

  • drop the final -r from entregar
  • add -lo
  • add an accent: entregá-lo

This is correct and important to recognize, although in spoken Brazilian Portuguese people often prefer repeating the noun or using other structures instead of these clitic pronouns.

How would I replace ao gerente with a pronoun?

Grammatically, ao gerente can become lhe, because lhe means to him, to her, or to you in the indirect-object sense.

So you may see:

  • A funcionária vai lhe entregar o relatório amanhã.

However, in everyday Brazilian Portuguese, many speakers prefer other options, such as:

  • A funcionária vai entregar o relatório para ele amanhã.

So for learners:

  • lhe = good to know, common in writing and formal speech
  • para ele/para ela = very common in everyday Brazilian Portuguese
Why are there accent marks in funcionária, relatório, and amanhã?

The accent marks help show correct stress and pronunciation, and they are part of the correct spelling.

For example:

  • funcionária: the stress falls on
  • relatório: the stress falls on
  • amanhã: the final ã is nasal

These accents are not optional. Writing them correctly matters in Portuguese.

For an English speaker, amanhã is especially worth noticing because the final sound is nasal and the nh is pronounced like the ny sound in canyon.

Is this sentence natural in Brazilian Portuguese, or does it sound too formal?

It sounds natural and correct. It is a neutral, standard sentence.

That said, in more casual Brazilian Portuguese, you might hear small changes such as:

  • A funcionária vai entregar o relatório pro gerente amanhã.

Here pro is a contraction of para o. That is very common in speech.

So the original sentence is perfectly good, and a slightly more casual spoken version is also common.

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