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Questions & Answers about A receita é simples.
What does the noun receita mean, and does it have any other meanings?
In this sentence, receita means a recipe—a set of instructions to prepare a dish. It’s worth noting that in other contexts, receita can also mean revenue or income, but here it clearly refers to a cooking recipe.
Why is the definite article a used before receita?
Portuguese nouns usually come with an article. In this case, a receita uses the feminine definite article (like saying the recipe in English), indicating that we are referring to a specific or well-known recipe.
What is the role of the verb é in the sentence and why is ser used instead of estar?
The verb é is the third person singular form of ser, which connects the subject (a receita) to its characteristic (simples). Ser is appropriate here because it conveys an inherent, permanent quality of the recipe, in contrast to estar, which would describe a temporary state.
Why is the adjective simples placed after the noun, and can its position be altered?
In Portuguese, adjectives that describe an inherent quality typically come after the noun—as seen in a receita é simples. Although you can sometimes place an adjective before the noun (e.g., a simples receita) for stylistic or emphatic reasons, doing so may subtly change the tone or focus of the sentence.
Since receita is a feminine noun, does simples need to change form to match?
No, simples does not change form based on the gender of the noun. Some adjectives in Portuguese remain the same for both feminine and masculine nouns, so in this case simples is efficient and correctly matches with receita.