Breakdown of Se fizer muito calor esta noite, vamos ligar o ar-condicionado em vez de abrir a janela.
muito
very
ir
to go (future auxiliary)
se
if
abrir
to open
Questions & Answers about Se fizer muito calor esta noite, vamos ligar o ar-condicionado em vez de abrir a janela.
Why is it se fizer and not se faz or se fará?
Because after se when you are talking about a possible future situation, Portuguese normally uses the future subjunctive.
This is very common in Portuguese:
- Se chover, ficamos em casa. = If it rains, we stay home.
- Se eu tiver tempo, eu vou. = If I have time, I’ll go.
English does not have this exact verb form, so it can feel unusual at first.
Why does fazer mean to be in fazer calor?
In Portuguese, weather expressions often use fazer in ways that do not translate word-for-word into English.
- fazer calor = to be hot
- fazer frio = to be cold
So:
- Faz calor hoje. = It’s hot today.
- Fez muito frio ontem. = It was very cold yesterday.
- Se fizer muito calor esta noite... = If it’s very hot tonight...
This is just a standard weather expression you need to learn as a chunk.
Why is it esta noite and not hoje à noite?