Word
Na rodoviária, a catraca não abriu, e o funcionário pediu calma.
Meaning
At the bus station, the turnstile did not open, and the employee asked for calm.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Lesson
Breakdown of Na rodoviária, a catraca não abriu, e o funcionário pediu calma.
não
not
e
and
abrir
to open
na
at the
Questions & Answers about Na rodoviária, a catraca não abriu, e o funcionário pediu calma.
Why does the sentence start with na instead of em a?
Na is the contraction of em + a.
- em = in / at / on
- a = the
So:
- na rodoviária = in/at the bus station
This kind of contraction is very common in Portuguese:
- em + o = no
- em + a = na
- em + os = nos
- em + as = nas
So na rodoviária is the normal, natural form.
What does rodoviária mean exactly? Is it just any bus stop?
No. Rodoviária usually means a bus terminal or long-distance bus station, not a simple street bus stop.
In Brazil:
- rodoviária = intercity / long-distance bus station
- ponto de ônibus = bus stop
- terminal = terminal, sometimes for city buses too
So this sentence suggests a place with controlled entry, staff, and probably boarding gates or turnstiles.
What is catraca?