Breakdown of Pede ajuda à Maria com o projeto, por favor.
Maria
Maria
por favor
please
o projeto
the project
a ajuda
the help
com
with
pedir
to ask for
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Questions & Answers about Pede ajuda à Maria com o projeto, por favor.
Why is pede used here instead of something like peça or pede with an “s”?
Because this is the affirmative imperative for tu in European Portuguese. Affirmative imperatives for tu are formed by taking the present‐tense form tu pedes and dropping the final -s, so you get pede.
Could I use peça instead?
Yes—but only if you’re addressing someone as você (or formally as o senhor/a senhora). In that case you’d use the 3rd‐person‐singular subjunctive: Peça ajuda à Maria com o projeto, por favor. Here, though, the sentence is an informal “tu” command.
Why does it say à Maria instead of just a Maria?
Portuguese uses the definite article before most personal names in European Portuguese. The preposition a (to) + the article a (the) contracts into à. So a + a Maria → à Maria.
Can I write Pede ajuda a Maria without the contraction?
Technically yes, you’d still be understood. But in EP it’s more idiomatic to keep the article and contract it: à Maria. Dropping the article entirely is more common in some regions of Brazil, not in Portugal.
What exactly is the role of à Maria in this sentence?
It’s the indirect object: “to Maria.” You’re asking the listener to ask Maria for help. In Portuguese one pede ajuda a alguém.
Why isn’t there an article before ajuda (i.e. why not a ajuda)?
Because pedir ajuda is a fixed verb–noun collocation, and in such combinations you don’t insert an article before the noun.
Why is it com o projeto and not com projeto?
When referring to a specific project, you need the definite article: com + o projeto = com o projeto. Omitting the article would sound odd unless you were speaking very loosely about projects in general.
Could I replace à Maria with a clitic pronoun?
Yes. In an affirmative imperative you attach the clitic: Pede-lhe ajuda com o projeto, por favor. Here lhe = “to her.” It’s more concise but a bit more formal/abstract than naming Maria directly.
Why is por favor placed at the end, and can I move it?
Por favor is flexible. Putting it at the end is most common for polite requests, but you can also start with it: Por favor, pede ajuda à Maria com o projeto. Both orders are correct.