Com mais experiência, a candidata sente menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas.

Com means with, so Com mais experiência means with more experience.

It works like an introductory phrase that sets the condition or context:

• Com mais experiência, ... = With more experience, ...
• It suggests that because the candidate has gained experience, the result is that she feels less anxiety.

You could also move this phrase later in the sentence:

• A candidata sente menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas com mais experiência.

But that version sounds awkward, because com mais experiência naturally works best as an opening context phrase here.

Because experiência here is being used in a general, uncountable sense, like experience in English.

So:

• com mais experiência = with more experience

You do not use a here, because the sentence is not talking about one specific experience. It is talking about having a greater amount of experience in general.

Compare:

• Ela tem experiência. = She has experience.
• Ela tem mais experiência. = She has more experience.

If you said a experiência, that would mean the experience, referring to something specific.

In Portuguese, singular countable nouns usually need an article or some other determiner.

So:

• a candidata = the candidate
• uma candidata = a candidate

Saying just candidata by itself as the subject would normally sound incomplete.

Portuguese uses articles more often than English does, so a candidata is very natural.

Sente is the present indicative form of sentir for ela / você / a candidata.

• eu sinto
• você / ela sente
• nós sentimos

In this sentence, the present tense expresses a general or habitual fact:

• A candidata sente menos ansiedade...
  = The candidate feels less anxiety...

This does not have to mean only right now. It can mean that this is generally true for her.

Both are possible in Portuguese, but they are structured differently and emphasize slightly different things.

In the sentence:

• sente menos ansiedade = feels less anxiety

Here, ansiedade is a noun.

Another possible sentence:

• está menos ansiosa = is less anxious
• se sente menos ansiosa = feels less anxious

Here, ansiosa is an adjective.

So the difference is roughly:

• sentir ansiedade = to feel anxiety
• estar / sentir-se ansiosa = to be / feel anxious

The given sentence focuses on the amount of anxiety, using the noun ansiedade.

Because sentir can be used directly with a noun as its object:

• sentir ansiedade
• sentir medo
• sentir alívio

So:

• A candidata sente menos ansiedade = The candidate feels less anxiety

If you use se sentir, it is often followed by an adjective or a description of state:

• Ela se sente ansiosa. = She feels anxious.
• Ela se sente confiante. = She feels confident.

So both patterns exist, but they are used differently:

• sentir + noun → sentir ansiedade
• sentir-se + adjective → sentir-se ansiosa

Because ansiedade is normally treated as an uncountable noun here, like anxiety in English.

So:

• menos ansiedade = less anxiety

Using the plural ansiedades is possible in some contexts, but it would usually mean different anxieties or sources of anxiety, which is not the idea here.

This sentence is talking about the general level of anxiety, so the singular is the natural choice.

In Portuguese, menos is the normal word for less / fewer.

So:

• mais experiência = more experience
• menos ansiedade = less anxiety

You do not usually say mais pouca ansiedade for this meaning. That sounds unnatural here.

Use:

• mais = more
• menos = less/fewer

Because antes is normally followed by de in Portuguese:

• antes de = before

Then de + as contracts to das:

• antes de as entrevistas → antes das entrevistas

So:

• antes das entrevistas = before the interviews

This is a very common contraction pattern in Portuguese.

Das is a contraction of:

• de + as = das

Since entrevistas is feminine plural, the definite article is as:

• as entrevistas = the interviews

After antes de, that becomes:

• antes das entrevistas = before the interviews

Other similar contractions:

• de + o = do
• de + a = da
• de + os = dos
• de + as = das

The plural suggests repeated situations or interviews in general, not just one specific interview.

So:

• antes das entrevistas = before the interviews / before interviews she has

This fits the idea that with more experience, she generally feels less anxiety before interview situations.

If it were just one interview, you might say:

• antes da entrevista = before the interview

So the plural helps show a repeated or broader situation.

Yes, but the meaning would be slightly different.

antes das entrevistas

This usually refers to specific interviews, or interviews understood in the context.

antes de entrevistas

This sounds more general: before interviews as a type of event.

So both can work, but:

• antes das entrevistas = before the interviews
• antes de entrevistas = before interviews / before interview situations in general

The version with das is more concrete and definite.

Because Com mais experiência is an introductory phrase placed before the main clause.

The comma helps separate the context-setting phrase from the main statement:

• Com mais experiência, a candidata sente menos ansiedade...

This is very natural punctuation in Portuguese.

In short sentences, commas after short introductory phrases are sometimes omitted, but here the comma is a good and standard choice.

Yes. Portuguese allows some flexibility.

For example:

• Com mais experiência, a candidata sente menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas.
• A candidata sente menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas com mais experiência. ← less natural / potentially unclear
• A candidata, com mais experiência, sente menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas.

The original version is the most natural because it clearly presents the cause/background first, then the main idea.

Yes.

In:

• a candidata sente menos ansiedade

the verb is sente and the thing being felt is menos ansiedade.

So ansiedade is the direct object, modified by menos.

Structure:

• A candidata = subject
• sente = verb
• menos ansiedade = direct object
• antes das entrevistas = time expression

You could, and it would be understandable, but it is less natural in this context than sente menos ansiedade.

Compare:

• A candidata sente menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas.
  Very natural: she feels less anxiety.

• A candidata está com menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas.
  Understandable, but a bit less direct and less idiomatic here.

Portuguese often prefers sentir with emotions like:

• sentir medo
• sentir ansiedade
• sentir alívio

So the original sentence is a strong, natural choice.

Only the gendered noun/article would change:

• Com mais experiência, o candidato sente menos ansiedade antes das entrevistas.

Changes:

• a candidata → o candidato

The rest of the sentence stays the same because:

• experiência is still feminine
• ansiedade is still feminine
• entrevistas is still feminine plural
• sente does not change with gender