Eu conto uma história à minha amiga.

I tell a story to my friend.

Breakdown of Eu conto uma história à minha amiga.

• eu: I
• minha: my
• a amiga: the friend
• uma: a
• contar: to tell
• a história: the story

Questions & Answers about Eu conto uma história à minha amiga.

Why does the Portuguese verb contar sometimes mean “to tell” and other times “to count”? How do I know which meaning to use?

Portuguese contar is polysemous.

• When it takes an object like uma história, um segredo, uma piada, etc., it usually means “to tell.”
• When it has a numerical object (e.g. os números, as batatas, as pessoas), it means “to count.”
  Context and the kind of object tell you which meaning applies.

Why is there an accent on à before minha amiga? What does à stand for?

À is the contraction of the preposition a + the feminine definite article a.

• Preposition a marks the indirect object (“to my friend”).
• Article a agrees with minha amiga (feminine singular).
  So a
  • a → à.

Why do we need the preposition a after contar? In English we just say “tell someone.”

In Portuguese, contar is ditransitive: it takes
1) a direct object (what you tell: uma história)
2) an indirect object (to whom you tell: a + pessoa).
The preposition a marks that second element.
English “tell someone” fuses these roles; Portuguese keeps them distinct.

Could I use para instead of a, as in Eu conto uma história para a minha amiga?

Yes, you can.

• Contar algo a alguém is the traditional pattern.
• Contar algo para alguém is also common, especially in informal speech, and puts slightly more emphasis on the “destination” of the action.
  Both mean “I tell a story to my friend.”

Can I change the word order to put à minha amiga before uma história?

Absolutely. You can say:

• Eu conto uma história à minha amiga.
• Eu conto à minha amiga uma história.
  Both are correct. Portuguese allows flexible placement of direct and indirect objects.

How do I replace à minha amiga with a pronoun?

Use the indirect‐object pronoun lhe (to her):

• Enclisis (after the verb): Eu conto-lhe uma história.
• Proclisis (before the verb, e.g. in negative or questions): Eu não lhe conto uma história.
  European Portuguese also often uses conto-lhe without a personal pronoun subject.

Why do we have the indefinite article uma before história? Could I say just Eu conto história à minha amiga?

História is a countable noun here, so Portuguese normally requires an article.

• uma história = “a story.”
  Saying contar história without an article would sound like you’re speaking in a very telegraphic or generic way (e.g. “to tell stories” generally) or as in fixed expressions, but it’s not standard for one specific story.

Why is it minha and not meu amiga?

Portuguese adjectives and possessives must match the gender (and number) of the noun they modify.

• amiga is feminine, so we use minha (feminine).
• If it were amigo (male friend), we would say meu amigo.

How do I ask “To whom am I telling a story?” in Portuguese?

Use a quem (no contraction, because quem has no article):

• A quem conto uma história?
  You can also say Para quem conto uma história?, especially in spoken or informal contexts.

How do I make the sentence negative? For example, “I’m not telling a story to my friend.”

Place não before the verb:

• Eu não conto uma história à minha amiga.
  If you use the pronoun lhe, you keep não before the verb as well:
• Eu não lhe conto uma história.