Breakdown of A polícia passou no semáforo vermelho para responder a um acidente.
um
a
em
in
para
to
passar
to pass
o acidente
the accident
a polícia
the police
o semáforo
the traffic light
vermelho
red
responder a
to respond to
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Questions & Answers about A polícia passou no semáforo vermelho para responder a um acidente.
Why is A polícia singular here, while in English we say “the police” as a plural group?
In European Portuguese, polícia is a collective noun treated grammatically as singular, so you pair it with singular verbs (e.g. A polícia passou). If you really want to talk about individual officers, you’d say os agentes da polícia or sometimes os polícias, but normally we keep polícia singular.
What does passar no semáforo vermelho literally mean, and how does it compare to the English “run a red light”?
Literally, passar means “to pass,” and no is the contraction of em + o (“in/on the”), so passar no semáforo vermelho is “to go past/through the red traffic light.” This is the standard European Portuguese way to say “run a red light.”
Could we use other verbs instead of passar, like avançar, queimar or furar?
Yes. Regionally or informally you might hear avançar o sinal vermelho, queimar o semáforo or furar o sinal, but in Portugal passar no semáforo vermelho is the most neutral and widely understood expression.
What is the function of para before responder, and why is it there?
Para + infinitive expresses purpose (“in order to”). So para responder a um acidente means “in order to respond to an accident.” It tells you why the police ran the red light.
Why is there an a after responder? Why not just responder um acidente?
When responder means “respond to” or “attend to” something, it behaves as an intransitive verb and takes the preposition a before its object. Hence responder a um acidente. Without a, responder would need a direct object (e.g. responder uma pergunta means “to answer a question”).
Why is the accident introduced with um instead of o?
Um is an indefinite article, introducing acidente as a new or unspecified event. If you were referring to a known specific accident, you’d use the definite article: responder ao acidente.
Could we start the sentence with the purpose clause? Would that change anything?
Yes. You can say Para responder a um acidente, a polícia passou no semáforo vermelho. The meaning stays the same; this word order simply puts more emphasis on the reason (the “in order to” part).
Would a Brazilian speaker say this sentence differently?
Often yes. In Brazil people commonly say passar no farol vermelho rather than semáforo, or use furar o sinal. They also tend to say atender a um acidente instead of responder a um acidente. But your original European Portuguese sentence is perfectly correct in Portugal.