Breakdown of Ele vai candidatar-se a um emprego.
um
a
ir
to go
ele
he
candidatar-se a
to apply for
o emprego
the job
Questions & Answers about Ele vai candidatar-se a um emprego.
Why is the verb written as candidatar‐se instead of just candidatar?
In Portuguese, many verbs are pronominal, meaning they are always used with a reflexive pronoun. Candidatar‐se is one of these verbs; the -se is a fixed part of the verb and does not imply that the subject is acting upon itself. It’s simply the standard form required to mean “to apply (for something)”.
How is the position of the reflexive pronoun determined in the sentence “Ele vai candidatar‐se a um emprego”?
Because the sentence uses a compound future construction (with vai from ir + an infinitive), the reflexive pronoun is attached to the infinitive itself. This placement—attaching -se to candidatar (known as enclisis)—is the correct and most common form in European Portuguese when the infinitive follows an auxiliary.
What does the combination vai + candidatar‐se express in this sentence?
The vai + infinitive structure indicates a near-future or intended action. In this case, Ele vai candidatar‐se a um emprego means “He is going to apply for a job,” emphasizing that the action is planned or imminent.
Why is the preposition a used before um emprego, and why isn’t it contracted?
The verb candidatar‐se requires the preposition a to indicate the target of the application. In Portuguese, contraction happens only when the preposition a meets a definite article (for example, a + o becomes ao). Since um is an indefinite article, no contraction occurs, so the phrase remains a um emprego.
Can the reflexive pronoun be placed elsewhere, such as before vai, instead of being attached to the infinitive?
While some dialects or informal speech might occasionally position the pronoun before the auxiliary (resulting in Ele se vai candidatar a um emprego), standard European Portuguese typically uses enclisis in such constructions. Therefore, attaching -se to the infinitive (as in candidatar‐se) is considered correct and more formal.
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