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Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil): Ele tem força. - He has strength.

Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil)
/Caring for a dog and cat
/Ele tem força.

Ele tem força.

Ele tem força.

He has strength.

Breakdown of Ele tem força.

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Questions & Answers about Ele tem força.

What part of the verb is tem?

Tem is the 3rd person singular form of the verb ter, which usually means to have.

So:

eu tenho = I have
você/ele/ela tem = you/he/she has
nós temos = we have
eles/elas têm = they have

In Ele tem força, tem matches ele.

Why is it tem and not têm?

Because ele is singular.

ele tem = he has
eles têm = they have

The circumflex in têm helps show the plural form. This is a very common thing learners notice.

Can I leave out ele?

Yes, in many situations you can.

Portuguese often allows the subject pronoun to be omitted when the meaning is clear from context:

Ele tem força.
Tem força.

Both can work, but there is a difference in use:

Ele tem força is clearer and more explicit.
Tem força depends more on context, because tem could also mean you have, she has, or he has, depending on what is already understood.

In Brazilian Portuguese, subject pronouns are used more often than in some other varieties, so ele sounds very normal.

Why is there no article before força?

Because Portuguese often uses abstract nouns without an article in this kind of sentence.

So Ele tem força sounds natural for He has strength.

You could sometimes hear:

Ele tem muita força = He has a lot of strength
Ele tem a força necessária = He has the necessary strength

But in the simple general statement, no article is needed.

What does força mean exactly here?

Força can refer to:

physical strength
inner strength
power
energy

So Ele tem força could mean:

he is physically strong
he has emotional strength
he has the strength to do something

The exact meaning depends on context.

Is Ele tem força the same as Ele é forte?

Not exactly, though they are often similar.

Ele tem força = He has strength
Ele é forte = He is strong

The difference is:

ter força focuses on having strength
ser forte describes him more directly as strong

In many contexts, either can work. But they are not always identical in tone:

Ele tem força para continuar. = He has the strength to continue.
Ele é forte. = He is strong.

How do I pronounce tem?

In Brazilian Portuguese, tem has a nasal sound. It is not pronounced like English tem with a clear final m sound.

A rough guide is:

tem ≈ tehng / teyn with nasalization

Important points:

The e sounds somewhat like eh
The final m nasalizes the vowel instead of being strongly pronounced

So it is more like tẽ than a full tem in English-style pronunciation.

How do I pronounce força, and why is there a ç?

Força is pronounced roughly like FOR-sa.

The ç is called cedilha. It makes the c sound like s before a, o, or u.

So:

ça = sa
ço = so
çu = su

Without the cedilla, ca would sound like ka, so forca would not be pronounced the same way.

Is força feminine? Does that matter here?

Yes, força is a feminine noun:

a força = the strength

In Ele tem força, that does not change the form of tem, because verbs do not agree with the gender of the noun after them.

It matters mainly when you use articles or adjectives:

a força
muita força
grande força

Can ele refer to things, not just people?

Yes. Ele normally means he, but it can also refer back to a masculine noun that is not a person.

For example, if you were talking about o carro:

Ele é rápido. = It is fast.

In your sentence, though, Ele tem força will usually be understood as He has strength unless the context clearly refers to a masculine object or animal.

Can this sentence be used for emotional strength, not just muscles?

Yes, absolutely.

Portuguese uses força in both literal and figurative ways, just like English uses strength.

Examples:

Ele tem força física. = He has physical strength.
Ele tem força emocional. = He has emotional strength.
Ele tem força para enfrentar isso. = He has the strength to face this.

So the short sentence Ele tem força is flexible.

How would I make this negative or turn it into a question?

To make it negative, add não before the verb:

Ele não tem força. = He does not have strength.

To ask a question, Brazilian Portuguese often keeps the same word order and changes the intonation:

Ele tem força? = Does he have strength?

You can also make it more explicit:

Será que ele tem força? = Does he have strength? / I wonder if he has strength.

Is the word order fixed here?

The normal word order is:

Ele + tem + força
subject + verb + object

This is the most neutral and common order.

Portuguese can sometimes change word order for emphasis, but for a basic statement, Ele tem força is the standard way to say it.

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