Depois que cortar a abóbora, eu vou guardar a outra metade na geladeira.

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Breakdown of Depois que cortar a abóbora, eu vou guardar a outra metade na geladeira.

• ir: to go (future auxiliary)
• na: in the
• a geladeira: the fridge

Questions & Answers about Depois que cortar a abóbora, eu vou guardar a outra metade na geladeira.

Why is cortar used after depois que? Is it the infinitive?

Here cortar is best understood as the future subjunctive, not the infinitive.

After expressions like depois que, quando, and se, Portuguese often uses the future subjunctive when talking about a future action:

• Depois que eu cortar... = after I cut...
• Quando ele chegar... = when he arrives...
• Se eles vierem... = if they come...

The confusing part is that for regular -ar verbs, the future subjunctive looks exactly like the infinitive:

• infinitive: cortar
• future subjunctive: quando eu cortar

So even though the form is the same, the grammar function is different here.

Why is there no eu before cortar? Shouldn’t it be Depois que eu cortar a abóbora?

Yes, Depois que eu cortar a abóbora is a fuller, very clear version.

In Portuguese, the subject is often omitted when it is understood from context. In this sentence, the main clause has eu vou guardar, so it is easy to understand that the person who will cut the pumpkin is also eu.

So both are possible:

• Depois que eu cortar a abóbora, eu vou guardar...
• Depois que cortar a abóbora, eu vou guardar...

The version with eu before cortar is more explicit. The version without it is more compact and can sound natural in speech.