Minha mãe enxuga a mesa com um pano limpo.

Because minha has to agree with mãe, the thing being possessed.

In Portuguese, possessive words like meu / minha agree with the noun that follows:

• meu pai = my father
• minha mãe = my mother
• meu livro = my book
• minha casa = my house

Since mãe is a feminine noun, you use minha.

Yes, you can also say A minha mãe enxuga a mesa com um pano limpo.

In Brazilian Portuguese, using a definite article before a possessive is often optional, especially with family members:

• minha mãe
• a minha mãe

Both are natural. The version without the article is very common and slightly simpler for learners.

Two things usually stand out to English speakers:

• nh in minha sounds like the ny in canyon
• mãe has a nasal vowel, so it is not pronounced like English mae

A rough guide:

• minha ≈ MEEN-ya
• mãe ≈ something like mang said through the nose, but very short

Also, the ã sound is nasal. Portuguese nasal vowels are important and may take practice.

Enxugar usually means to wipe, to dry, or to wipe dry, depending on context.

So enxuga a mesa suggests she is wiping the table, probably to dry it or remove moisture.

This is different from:

• limpar = to clean
• secar = to dry

Sometimes these overlap in English, but enxugar often focuses on using a cloth or towel to remove liquid.

Because the subject is minha mãe, which is she in English.

Enxuga is the third-person singular present tense of enxugar:

• eu enxugo = I wipe/dry
• você/ele/ela enxuga = you/he/she wipes/dries
• nós enxugamos = we wipe/dry
• vocês/eles/elas enxugam = you/they wipe/dry

Since minha mãe = she, enxuga is the correct form.

It can mean either, depending on context.

In Portuguese, the simple present often covers both:

• a habitual action: My mother wipes the table
• a current action, especially in descriptions: My mother is wiping the table

If you want to make the ongoing action very explicit, Brazilian Portuguese often uses:

• Minha mãe está enxugando a mesa.

So the original sentence can be understood as either general or current, depending on the situation.

Because Portuguese usually uses an article where English might not think about one.

Here, a mesa means the table. It refers to a specific table, so the definite article is natural.

Without the article, mesa would usually sound incomplete or unnatural in this sentence.

So:

• a mesa = the table
• uma mesa = a table

Com means with.

In this sentence, it introduces the instrument used to do the action:

• com um pano limpo = with a clean cloth

So it tells you how she is wiping the table.

Because pano is a masculine singular noun.

That means both the article and the adjective must agree with it:

• um pano
• pano limpo

Agreement in Portuguese works like this:

• masculine singular: um pano limpo
• feminine singular: uma toalha limpa

So limpo matches pano, not mesa.

It describes the cloth.

In um pano limpo, the adjective limpo directly follows pano, so it means a clean cloth.

It does not mean the table is clean. If you wanted to say the table is clean, you would say something like:

• A mesa está limpa.

So in the original sentence:

• mesa = the thing being wiped
• pano limpo = the clean cloth being used

Yes, Portuguese allows some flexibility.

The most neutral order is:

• Minha mãe enxuga a mesa com um pano limpo.

But you could also say:

• Com um pano limpo, minha mãe enxuga a mesa.

That version puts more emphasis on with a clean cloth.

The original order is the most natural and straightforward for everyday use.

Not exactly.

• pano = cloth, rag, dishcloth, fabric cloth
• toalha = towel

In this sentence, pano suggests some kind of cloth used to wipe the table. It is a more general word than toalha.

So um pano limpo is a very natural choice here.

The tilde in mãe shows that the vowel is nasal: ã.

This changes the pronunciation. Without nasalization, it would sound very different.

For learners, the important point is:

• mãe is not pronounced like English my or may
• the vowel is nasal, and that nasal sound is part of the word itself

The accent mark is essential, both for correct spelling and pronunciation.