Minha cunhada disse que o repolho desta semana está melhor do que o da semana passada.

Minha means my, and cunhada means sister-in-law.

So minha cunhada = my sister-in-law.

The possessive minha agrees with the noun cunhada, which is feminine singular. If the noun were masculine, it would be meu instead:

• meu cunhado = my brother-in-law
• minha cunhada = my sister-in-law

Cunhada means sister-in-law. It can refer to:

• your spouse’s sister
• your sibling’s wife

Portuguese uses the same word for both relationships, just like English often does.

Disse is the past tense of dizer = to say.

So:

• disse = said
• que = that

Together, disse que means said that.

This is very common in Portuguese:

• Ele disse que vem. = He said that he is coming.
• Ela disse que gostou. = She said that she liked it.

In this sentence, que introduces what the sister-in-law said.

Because repolho is a masculine noun in Portuguese.

So you say:

• o repolho = the cabbage

Even though cabbage is not biologically masculine, grammatical gender in Portuguese is just a noun category. It does not always match any real-world gender.

Desta is a contraction of de + esta.

So:

• de = of / from
• esta = this
• desta = of this / from this

So o repolho desta semana literally means the cabbage of this week, which in natural English is this week’s cabbage.

Because the sentence is talking about the cabbage of this week, not simply this week by itself.

Compare:

• esta semana = this week
• desta semana = of this week / this week’s

Here, desta semana modifies o repolho, showing which cabbage is being discussed:

• o repolho desta semana = this week’s cabbage

In standard grammar:

• esta / desta usually refers to something closer to the speaker, or the current context
• essa / dessa usually refers to something closer to the listener, or something already mentioned

So:

• desta semana = of this week
• dessa semana = of that week or sometimes of this week in everyday speech, depending on context

In Brazilian Portuguese, many speakers do not strictly maintain the classical este/esse distinction in casual speech. But desta semana is perfectly natural and clear here.

Because estar is often used for conditions or states, while ser is more often used for identity, essence, or more permanent characteristics.

Here, the idea is that the cabbage is in a better condition / seems better this week than last week. So está melhor sounds natural.

Compare:

• O repolho está melhor hoje. = The cabbage is better today.
• Isso é melhor. = That is better.

With food, produce, health, mood, and temporary situations, estar is very common.

Melhor means better.

To compare two things, Portuguese often uses:

• melhor do que = better than

So:

• está melhor do que o da semana passada = is better than the one from last week

You may also hear melhor que in everyday speech:

• melhor que
• melhor do que

Both are common, but melhor do que is especially clear and often preferred in careful writing or teaching examples.

Because Portuguese often avoids repetition when the noun is already understood.

So:

• o da semana passada literally means the one from last week

Here, o stands in for o repolho:

• o da semana passada = the cabbage from last week

This is very natural in Portuguese. English does the same thing:

• this one is better than the one from last week

Because it refers back to o repolho, and repolho is masculine.

So the substitute article must match the hidden noun:

• o repolho → o da semana passada
• if it were a feminine noun, you would use a

For example:

• a alface desta semana está melhor do que a da semana passada
• This week’s lettuce is better than last week’s

Semana passada means last week.

In Portuguese, adjectives usually come after the noun, so:

• semana passada = literally week past
• natural English: last week

That word order is very normal in Portuguese:

• mês passado = last month
• ano passado = last year

Not in this sentence.

After disse, you need que to introduce the full clause:

• Minha cunhada disse que...

Without que, the sentence would sound incomplete or wrong in standard Portuguese.

Yes, it sounds natural and correct.

It is a fairly neutral, standard sentence. A Brazilian speaker might also say slightly different versions, such as:

• Minha cunhada disse que o repolho dessa semana está melhor que o da semana passada.
• Minha cunhada falou que o repolho desta semana está melhor do que o da semana passada.

Differences like disse vs. falou, or desta vs. dessa, can happen depending on style and region, but the original sentence is completely natural.

A rough pronunciation guide would be:

MEE-nya koon-YAH-da JEE-see kee oo heh-POH-lyoo DES-ta seh-MAH-na es-TAH mel-YOR doo kee oo da seh-MAH-na pah-SAH-da

A few helpful notes:

• nh in minha sounds like the ny in canyon
• lh in repolho sounds like the lli in million for many English speakers
• que here sounds like kee
• melhor has the lh sound again, not a normal English l

Pronunciation varies by region, but this is a useful approximation.