Word
Antes de fazer um empréstimo, compare a taxa e os juros.
Meaning
Before taking out a loan, compare the fee and the interest.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Lesson
Breakdown of Antes de fazer um empréstimo, compare a taxa e os juros.
e
and
antes de
before
comparar
to compare
fazer um empréstimo
to take a loan
Questions & Answers about Antes de fazer um empréstimo, compare a taxa e os juros.
Why is it antes de fazer and not just antes fazer?
Because antes is normally followed by de when the next verb stays in the infinitive.
- antes de fazer = before doing / before making
- antes de sair = before leaving
- antes de comprar = before buying
So antes de + infinitive is the standard pattern here.
Why is the verb fazer in the infinitive?
After the preposition de, Portuguese commonly uses the infinitive form of the verb.
So in:
- antes de fazer um empréstimo
the verb fazer is not conjugated because it is part of the structure antes de + infinitive.
If you wanted a fully conjugated clause instead, you would usually need something like:
But that is a different structure and sounds more complex than the original sentence.
Why does Portuguese say fazer um empréstimo? Isn’t that literally make a loan?