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Questions & Answers about O vinho é raro.
What is the function of O at the beginning of the sentence?
O is the definite article in Portuguese, equivalent to the in English. It’s used here to signal that vinho (wine) is a specific, identifiable item. Since vinho is masculine, the masculine article o is required.
What does the noun vinho mean, and why is its gender important here?
Vinho means wine. Its gender is masculine, which is why both the article (o) and the adjective (raro) appear in their masculine forms. In Portuguese, adjectives and articles must agree in gender (and number) with the noun they modify.
How is the adjective raro used in this sentence, and what does it mean?
The adjective raro describes the quality of the wine, meaning rare or uncommon. It comes after the linking verb é to indicate an inherent characteristic of the subject. In this context, it indicates that the wine is not commonly found or is unique.
What role does the verb é play in the sentence?
É is the third-person singular form of the verb ser (to be). It functions as a linking verb, connecting the subject O vinho with its defining characteristic raro. This construction is common in sentences that describe an essential quality.
How is the sentence structured in terms of Portuguese grammar?
The sentence follows a basic Subject-Verb-Adjective structure. O vinho is the subject, é (from ser) is the linking verb, and raro is the predicate adjective that expresses a quality of the subject. This is similar to the English structure “The wine is rare.”
Would the article and adjective change if a feminine noun were used instead of vinho?
Yes, they would. If a feminine noun were used, both the article and the adjective would change to their feminine forms. For example, to say “The beer is rare” in Portuguese, you would say A cerveja é rara — here, a is the feminine article and rara is the feminine form of the adjective.