Leia a embalagem antes de comprar, porque ela mostra tudo.

Leia is the imperative form, used to give an instruction or recommendation: Read the package before buying.

More specifically, leia is the você command form of ler (to read). In Brazilian Portuguese, você is very common, so instructions on labels, signs, ads, and manuals often use this form.

• ler = to read
• lê = you/he/she reads
• leia = read! / please read

So Leia a embalagem means Read the package/packaging.

Yes, it is a command grammatically, but in Portuguese this kind of command is often used for neutral instructions, not necessarily rude orders.

In contexts like:

• packaging
• advertisements
• public notices
• manuals

Leia sounds like a normal instruction or recommendation, similar to English Read the label before use.

If you wanted to sound more explicitly polite in conversation, you could add words like:

• Por favor, leia... = Please read...

But on packaging, Leia a embalagem... sounds completely natural.

Embalagem usually means packaging, package, or container, depending on context.

So Leia a embalagem can mean:

• Read the packaging
• Read the package
• sometimes even Read the label/box/container information

It is a feminine noun, which is why it uses a:

• a embalagem
• uma embalagem

Here, a is the definite article meaning the.

• a embalagem = the package / the packaging

It is not a pronoun here. It just matches the noun’s gender:

• masculine singular: o
• feminine singular: a

Since embalagem is feminine, Portuguese uses a.

After antes, Portuguese normally uses de before an infinitive:

• antes de comprar = before buying
• antes de sair = before leaving
• antes de usar = before using

So antes de + infinitive is the normal pattern.

English often says before buying, while Portuguese says literally before to buy, but that is just how the structure works in Portuguese.

Because after antes de, Portuguese commonly uses the infinitive.

So:

• antes de comprar = before buying
• antes de abrir = before opening
• antes de usar = before using

This is very common and natural in Portuguese. English often uses the -ing form, but Portuguese usually uses the infinitive in this structure.

The subject is understood from context. Portuguese often leaves out words that English might make explicit.

Here, the sentence is addressing you:

• Leia a embalagem antes de comprar
  = Read the package before buying

The implied meaning is:

• before you buy it

Portuguese does not need to say você here, because it is already clear from the command leia.

Good question. Portuguese often omits an object when it is obvious from context.

So antes de comprar naturally means:

• before buying it
• before you buy the product

The object is understood.

A fuller version could be:

• antes de comprá-la = before buying it

But that sounds more explicit and a bit heavier. In a short instruction on packaging, antes de comprar is simpler and more natural.

Also, comprar ela is not the standard written form in this kind of sentence. If you include the object pronoun, standard written Portuguese would prefer comprá-la.

Porque here means because.

The sentence gives a reason:

• Leia a embalagem antes de comprar, porque ela mostra tudo.
• Read the package before buying, because it shows everything.

This is the normal spelling when you are giving an explanation or cause.

Learners often confuse these forms:

• porque = because
• por que = why / for what reason
• porquê = the reason
• por quê = why at the end of a phrase or before punctuation

In this sentence, porque is correct because it introduces the reason.

Ela refers to a embalagem.

Since embalagem is a feminine noun, the pronoun is feminine too:

• a embalagem → ela

So:

• porque ela mostra tudo
• because it shows everything

Even though English uses it for objects, Portuguese uses ele/ela according to grammatical gender.

In Portuguese, ele and ela can refer to people or things, depending on grammatical gender.

So:

• o livro → ele
• a embalagem → ela

In English, we usually use it for things, but Portuguese often uses ele/ela when referring back to nouns.

That does not mean the object is being treated like a person. It is just normal grammar.

Mostra means shows.

• mostrar = to show
• mostra = shows

Tudo means everything.

So:

• ela mostra tudo = it shows everything

In context, this means the packaging contains all the necessary information, such as:

• ingredients
• instructions
• warnings
• expiration date
• product details

Because the sentence is emphasizing that the package displays or shows the information.

Compare:

• ela mostra tudo = it shows everything
• ela tem tudo = it has everything

Both could make sense in some contexts, but mostra tudo is better if the idea is that the package presents the information clearly for the reader.

The comma separates the main instruction from the reason:

• Leia a embalagem antes de comprar = main idea
• porque ela mostra tudo = explanation

In Portuguese, a comma before porque is common when the second part adds an explanatory clause.

This is similar to English:

• Read the package before buying, because it shows everything.

Sometimes they overlap, but they are not exactly the same.

• embalagem = packaging / package / container
• rótulo = label

If the text is printed on the whole box, bag, or package, embalagem makes sense. If you specifically mean the sticker or printed label, rótulo may be more precise.

So:

• Leia a embalagem = read the packaging/package
• Leia o rótulo = read the label

Both are possible in real life, depending on what exactly you mean.

In Brazilian Portuguese, leia is approximately pronounced like LAY-ah, but with Portuguese vowel quality.

A rough breakdown:

• lei sounds somewhat like lay
• final a sounds like ah

So: LEI-a

This is only an approximation. The important point is that it has two syllables:

• lei-a

Not one syllable like English lay.