Você tem que esfregar a pia devagar.

In Brazilian Portuguese, ter que + infinitive is a very common way to express obligation.

• você tem que = you have to
• esfregar = to scrub

So você tem que esfregar literally works like you have to scrub.

A close variant is ter de + infinitive:

• Você tem de esfregar a pia.

This means basically the same thing, though ter que is extremely common in everyday speech.

Because after tem que, Portuguese uses the infinitive form of the main verb.

Structure:

• você tem que + infinitive

So:

• você tem que esfregar = you have to scrub
• not você tem que esfrega

Other examples:

• Você tem que estudar.
• Você tem que sair cedo.
• Você tem que lavar a louça.

This is similar to English:

• you have to scrub
• not you have to scrubs

Você is the most common singular you in much of Brazil.

So:

• você tem que... = you have to...

A few important notes:

• In some regions or situations, people may use tu instead.
• Você usually takes third-person verb forms, not second-person ones.

For example:

• você tem
• not você tens

That can feel strange to English speakers, but it is completely normal in Portuguese.

Portuguese often uses definite articles more often than English does.

• a pia = literally the sink

Even when English might say just sink in some contexts, Portuguese often prefers the article.

So:

• esfregar a pia = scrub the sink

This is very natural Portuguese.

Pia usually means sink or washbasin, depending on context.

In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, it can refer to:

• a kitchen sink
• a bathroom sink
• sometimes another sink-like basin

The exact type is usually understood from the situation.

Examples:

• pia da cozinha = kitchen sink
• pia do banheiro = bathroom sink

So by itself, a pia just means the sink.

Devagar means slowly, and placing it at the end is very natural in Portuguese.

• Você tem que esfregar a pia devagar.

This word order is common because adverbs like devagar often come after the verb or after the object.

You may also hear:

• Você tem que esfregar devagar a pia.

But this sounds less natural in many everyday contexts. The most neutral version here is:

• esfregar a pia devagar

Here, devagar is an adverb, because it describes how the action is done.

It answers:

• How do you have to scrub the sink?
• Devagar = slowly

Unlike English, many Portuguese adverbs are not formed with an -ly ending. So devagar is just its own word.

Compare:

• falar devagar = to speak slowly
• andar devagar = to walk slowly
• lavar devagar = to wash slowly

Yes, you can, but devagar is more common and more natural in everyday speech.

• devagar = slowly
• lentamente = slowly

Both are correct:

• Você tem que esfregar a pia devagar.
• Você tem que esfregar a pia lentamente.

However, lentamente can sound a bit more formal or literary, while devagar is the usual everyday choice.

It expresses obligation, but it is not exactly the same as a direct command.

• Você tem que esfregar a pia devagar. = You have to scrub the sink slowly.

This sounds like telling someone what is necessary or required.

A more direct command would be:

• Esfregue a pia devagar. = Scrub the sink slowly.

So:

• tem que = obligation / necessity
• imperative form = direct instruction or command

In natural speech, many Brazilians reduce você to cê:

• Cê tem que esfregar a pia devagar.

This is very common in conversation, but in writing, especially neutral or standard writing, você is preferred.

Also, in fast speech:

• tem que may sound more like tem que with a very light que
• esfregar a pia may flow together smoothly

But the standard full form remains:

• Você tem que esfregar a pia devagar.

A helpful rough guide for English speakers is:

• esfregar ≈ es-freh-GAR

A few pronunciation notes:

• the stress falls on the last syllable: gar
• the r at the end is pronounced with a Brazilian Portuguese r, which varies by region
• the e in fre is more like eh than English ee

You do not need a perfect regional r to be understood. The most important thing is getting the stress right:

• es-fre-GAR

Yes. Portuguese often drops the subject when it is understood from context.

So both are possible:

• Você tem que esfregar a pia devagar.
• Tem que esfregar a pia devagar.

The second version can sound more general, like:

• It’s necessary to scrub the sink slowly or
• You have to scrub the sink slowly

Whether it refers specifically to you depends on context.

Here is the breakdown:

• Você — subject pronoun: you
• tem — conjugated form of ter for você
• que — links ter to the infinitive and helps form have to
• esfregar — infinitive verb: to scrub
• a pia — direct object: the sink
• devagar — adverb: slowly

So the structure is:

subject + ter que + infinitive + object + adverb

That pattern is very useful and extremely common in Portuguese.