A sinalização mostra o atalho e a cachoeira?

A sinalização usually means the signage, the signposting, or the system of signs/markers in a place. It does not normally refer to just one physical sign.

So in this sentence, it suggests something like:

• the trail signage
• the posted signs
• the marked directions in the area

If you wanted to talk about one specific sign, you would more likely say a placa or o sinal, depending on the context.

Because Portuguese nouns have grammatical gender.

• a sinalização → feminine
• o atalho → masculine
• a cachoeira → feminine

The article has to match the noun:

• a for feminine singular
• o for masculine singular

This gender is grammatical, not necessarily logical. For example, atalho ends in -o, which often makes it masculine, while sinalização ends in -ão, and this particular noun is feminine: a sinalização.

Mostra is the third-person singular form of the verb mostrar (to show).

The subject is a sinalização, which is singular, so the verb is singular too:

• a sinalização mostra = the signage shows

A few forms of mostrar in the present tense:

• eu mostro = I show
• você mostra = you show
• ele/ela mostra = he/she shows
• a sinalização mostra = the signage shows

In Portuguese, yes/no questions are often formed without changing the word order. The sentence looks like a statement, and the question is shown mainly by:

• intonation in speech
• the question mark in writing

So:

• A sinalização mostra o atalho e a cachoeira. = The signage shows the shortcut and the waterfall.
• A sinalização mostra o atalho e a cachoeira? = Does the signage show the shortcut and the waterfall?

Unlike English, Portuguese usually does not need an auxiliary like does.

Because Portuguese does not normally use do/does as a helper verb to make questions.

English:

• Does the signage show the shortcut?

Portuguese:

• A sinalização mostra o atalho?

Portuguese simply uses the normal verb form and relies on intonation or punctuation. This is very common and natural.

Atalho usually means shortcut.

It can be:

• a physical shortcut on a trail, road, or route
• sometimes a more abstract shortcut, depending on context

In this sentence, because cachoeira means waterfall, the setting sounds like a trail, park, or natural area. So atalho most likely means a path shortcut.

Portuguese often uses definite articles more frequently than English.

Here:

• o atalho = the shortcut
• a cachoeira = the waterfall

Using the articles makes the sentence sound natural and specific, as if both are known or relevant in the context.

You may sometimes see articles omitted in certain styles or structures, but in this sentence, including them is the normal choice.

Yes. The phrase o atalho e a cachoeira means the shortcut and the waterfall — both of them.

So the question asks whether the signage indicates:

• where the shortcut is
• and where the waterfall is

If the speaker wanted to ask about one or the other, they might use different wording, such as o atalho ou a cachoeira (the shortcut or the waterfall).

Not by itself.

The sentence uses mostra (shows), and there is no preposition like para (to/for) or como chegar à (how to get to).

So mostra o atalho e a cachoeira literally means the signage shows/indicates the shortcut and the waterfall.

Depending on context, English might translate this more naturally as:

• Does the signage show the shortcut and the waterfall?
• Does the signage indicate where the shortcut and the waterfall are?

But the Portuguese sentence itself does not literally say to.

In Brazilian Portuguese, cachoeira is the most common everyday word for waterfall.

Queda d’água also means waterfall, but it can sound:

• a bit more descriptive or technical
• sometimes broader, depending on context

For most travel, hiking, and conversation contexts in Brazil, cachoeira is the word learners will hear most often.

A natural Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation would sound roughly like:

a seen-ah-lee-zah-SOWN MOHS-trah oo ah-TAHL-yoo ee ah kah-shoh-EH-rah?

A few notes:

• sinalização has stress on the last syllable: -ção
• mostra has stress on mos
• atalho has the lh sound, similar to ly in some approximations, but smoother
• cachoeira is stressed on ei

A more approximate breakdown:

• A sinalização → ah see-nah-lee-zah-SOWN
• mostra → MOHS-trah
• o atalho → oo ah-TAHL-yoo
• e a cachoeira → ee ah kah-shoh-EH-rah

Yes, often you can, but the meaning shifts slightly.

• A sinalização = the signage / signposting system
• As placas = the signs / signboards

So:

• A sinalização mostra o atalho e a cachoeira? asks about the signage in general.
• As placas mostram o atalho e a cachoeira? asks whether the actual signs show them.

Both are natural, but a sinalização sounds a little broader and more general.

Yes, it is natural and understandable.

It sounds like something someone might ask in a park, trail area, tourist site, or nature reserve.

Depending on context, a Brazilian speaker might also say:

• A sinalização indica o atalho e a cachoeira?
• As placas mostram onde ficam o atalho e a cachoeira?

But your sentence is perfectly normal. Mostrar works well here, especially in everyday speech.