Question 1

Is it necessary to use the subject pronoun nós in Portuguese?

Accepted Answer

Portuguese is a “pro-drop” language, so you can omit nós because the verb ending -amos already tells you the subject is “we.” Using nós isn’t wrong—it adds emphasis or clarity—but most speakers would simply say Caminhamos pela colina… when context makes “we” obvious.

Question 2

How do I know if caminhamos is present tense or past tense?

Accepted Answer

Written forms differ by an accent:  
 - Present: caminhamos (no accent) → we walk  
 - Preterite: caminhámos (accent on the first “a”) → we walked  
In your sentence there’s no accent, so it’s present. Also todos os dias (every day) signals a habitual action in the present.

Question 3

What does pela mean in pela colina? Why not por a colina or na colina?

Accepted Answer

Pela is the contraction of por + a. It marks movement along/through/across something—in this case the hill.  
- Por a colina is ungrammatical, so you must contract to pela.  
- Na colina would mean “on the hill,” focusing on being atop it rather than moving across it.

Question 4

Why is there an article in todos os dias? Can I say todos dias?

Accepted Answer

In Portuguese, dia is a masculine noun, so its plural takes the article os. You say todos os dias for “every day.” Omitting os (todos dias) sounds unnatural.

Question 5

Can I move todos os dias to a different position in the sentence?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Time expressions are flexible. For example:  
 - Todos os dias, caminhamos pela colina…  
 - Caminhamos pela colina todos os dias para visitar a aldeia vizinha.  
Putting it right after the verb or at the very beginning are both perfectly acceptable.

Question 6

Why is the purpose expressed with para visitar instead of just visitar?

Accepted Answer

To indicate purpose, Portuguese uses para + infinitive (“in order to visit”). Dropping para (e.g., caminhamos… visitar) would be incorrect here. The preposition para links the main action to its goal.

Question 7

Why is the adjective vizinha placed after aldeia? Can adjectives come before nouns?

Accepted Answer

The default order in Portuguese is noun + adjective, so aldeia vizinha (“neighboring village”). Adjectives can sometimes precede for stylistic or idiomatic reasons (e.g. grande homem vs homem grande), but with vizinha it’s standard to follow the noun.

Question 8

Could I use andamos instead of caminhamos? What’s the difference?

Accepted Answer

Both can mean “we walk,” but andar is more general (it can also mean “to go,” “to ride,” “to hang out,” etc.). Caminhar specifically means “to walk on foot.” In this context caminhamos emphasizes the act of walking itself, though andamos would also be perfectly correct in everyday speech.

Nós caminhamos pela colina todos os dias para visitar a aldeia vizinha.

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