Breakdown of Quanto vai custar consertar estes óculos?
Questions & Answers about Quanto vai custar consertar estes óculos?
What is the literal structure of Quanto vai custar consertar estes óculos?
A fairly literal breakdown is:
- Quanto = how much
- vai custar = is going to cost / will cost
- consertar = to fix, to repair
- estes óculos = these glasses
So the structure is basically How much will it cost to repair these glasses?
Portuguese often keeps the infinitive verb after custar in this kind of sentence, where English uses to + verb.
Why is it vai custar instead of just custa or custará?
In Brazilian Portuguese, ir + infinitive is a very common way to talk about the future.
- vai custar = is going to cost / will cost
- custará = will cost, but more formal or more written
- custa = costs; in conversation, it can also be used for present or near-future meaning depending on context
So:
- Quanto vai custar consertar estes óculos? = very natural
- Quanto custa consertar estes óculos? = also very natural
- Quanto custará consertar estes óculos? = correct, but more formal
Why is consertar in the infinitive?
Because the action to repair these glasses is the thing whose price is being asked about.
In other words, Portuguese treats consertar estes óculos as the action that will cost some amount.
This is very common after custar:
- Quanto custa fazer isso? = How much does it cost to do that?
- Vai custar resolver esse problema. = It will cost money / be costly to solve that problem.
You could also turn the action into a noun:
- Quanto vai custar o conserto destes óculos? = How much will the repair of these glasses cost?
Why isn’t there para before consertar?
After custar in this structure, Portuguese normally uses the infinitive directly:
- Quanto custa consertar estes óculos?
not:
- Quanto custa para consertar estes óculos? in this exact sense
The direct infinitive is the standard pattern after custar when you mean the cost of doing something.
If you change the structure, you may see para in other expressions, for example:
- Quanto é para consertar estes óculos? = How much is it to fix these glasses?
That is a different construction.
Why is it estes? Would esses also be possible?
Textbook Portuguese usually distinguishes them like this:
- este/estes = this/these, near the speaker
- esse/esses = that/those, near the listener or already mentioned
- aquele/aqueles = that/those over there, farther away
So estes óculos means these glasses, typically close to the speaker.
However, in everyday Brazilian Portuguese, many speakers use esse/esses much more broadly, even in places where a textbook would prefer este/estes. So esses óculos is also very common in real life.
That means:
- estes óculos = correct
- esses óculos = also very common in Brazil
Why is óculos plural?
Do I need an article before estes óculos?
Is consertar the right spelling? What about concertar?
Could I also say Quanto custa consertar estes óculos?
Yes. That is completely natural, and many speakers would probably choose that version first.
A rough difference is:
- Quanto custa consertar estes óculos? = neutral question about the price
- Quanto vai custar consertar estes óculos? = a little more focused on the future estimate
In practice, both are normal and useful.
Could I use another verb instead of consertar?
Sometimes, yes, but consertar is the clearest everyday choice for repair.
Some alternatives:
- arrumar = can mean fix, but it also means arrange / tidy up, so it is less precise
- reparar = in Brazilian Portuguese, it very often means to notice, so it is not the best default verb for repairs in everyday speech
- corrigir = means correct, not repair in this context
So if you are talking about fixing glasses, consertar is the safest and most natural choice.
How is the sentence pronounced in Brazilian Portuguese?
A rough pronunciation in many Brazilian accents would be:
KWAN-too vai koos-TAR kon-sehr-TAR ES-tchis OH-koo-loos?
A few notes:
- Quanto has stress on the first syllable: QUAN-to
- custar and consertar are stressed on the last syllable
- óculos is stressed on ó
- estes may sound closer to ES-tchis in many Brazilian accents, but pronunciation varies by region
You do not need to pronounce it exactly like the rough English guide above, but it can help as a starting point.
Is this sentence natural and polite in Brazil?
Yes. It sounds natural and polite enough for everyday use, especially in a shop or repair setting.
Other common ways to ask the same thing are:
- Quanto custa consertar estes óculos?
- Quanto fica para consertar estes óculos?
- Quanto sai o conserto destes óculos?
All of these are useful. The sentence you were given is perfectly good Brazilian Portuguese.
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