Ele vai à casa.

He goes to the house.

Breakdown of Ele vai à casa.

• ir: to go
• a casa: the house
• ele: he

Questions & Answers about Ele vai à casa.

Why is there a grave accent in à?

In Portuguese, à is the contraction of the preposition a (to) with the feminine definite article a (the). Putting them together as à (with a grave accent) indicates that you are going to a specific place, such as à casa (to the house).

Could we just say Ele vai a casa without the contracted form?

In casual speech, some Portuguese speakers might drop the contraction and simply say Ele vai a casa. However, in written and more formal settings, à is considered the correct spelling to show that the preposition a is merging with the article a to form one word.

Is it mandatory to include Ele at the start of the sentence?

Unlike in Spanish or Italian, Portuguese usually does not drop the subject pronoun in writing or in clearer speech contexts, especially in Portugal. However, sometimes you might hear people omitting Ele in casual conversation if the context allows, but it’s generally more standard to keep it.

What's the difference between saying Ele vai à casa and Ele vai para casa?

• Ele vai à casa often implies a short or immediate visit, especially in European Portuguese, to a specific house (perhaps his own or someone else’s).
• Ele vai para casa implies that he’s going home as his destination, often with the idea of staying there or it being his home.

Why is the preposition a used here instead of other Portuguese prepositions?

The verb ir (to go) is commonly followed by the preposition a to indicate movement toward a location. In Portuguese, certain verbs traditionally pair with certain prepositions, and ir a is a classic example. When that location is feminine (like a casa), you usually see the contraction à instead of writing a and a separately.