Eu tenho dez amigos.

I have ten friends.

Breakdown of Eu tenho dez amigos.

• eu: I
• o amigo: the friend
• ter: to have
• dez: ten

Questions & Answers about Eu tenho dez amigos.

Can I drop the pronoun Eu and just say Tenho dez amigos?

Yes. Portuguese is a “pro-drop” language, so the verb ending already tells you the subject.

• Tenho ends in -o, which is only for the first person singular (“I”).
• Native speakers often omit Eu in everyday speech and writing.
• You would still include Eu if you want extra emphasis or to contrast with someone else: Eu tenho dez amigos, mas tu tens só dois.

Why is the verb ter used here, and how do I conjugate it in the present tense?

To express possession in Portuguese you use ter (to have), not haver. Ter is irregular. In the present indicative you get:
• eu tenho
• tu tens
• ele/ela/você tem
• nós temos
• vós tendes (rarely used in speech)
• eles/elas/vocês têm

In our sentence, tenho = “I have.”

Does the numeral dez change for gender or number?

No. Cardinal numbers (um, dois, três, dez, vinte, etc.) are invariable. They never agree in gender or plurality. You always say dez amigos, dez amigas, dez carros, dez casas, and so on.

Why is there no article before dez amigos? Would Eu tenho os dez amigos be correct?

• When you state how many friends you have in general, you drop the article: Tenho dez amigos = “I have ten friends.”
• Adding os (“the”) makes it specific: Eu tenho os dez amigos means “I have the ten friends [we talked about before].”
• If you want to say “I have my ten friends,” you’d say Tenho os meus dez amigos.

Why is amigos masculine plural? What if all my friends are women?

Nouns and adjectives in Portuguese agree in gender and number.

• amigos is masculine plural; it’s the default for a mixed-gender group.
• If your ten friends are all female, use amigas (feminine plural): Tenho dez amigas.

Where do numbers go in relation to the noun? Why is dez before amigos?

Numbers, like articles and demonstratives, are determiners and always precede the noun:
• dez amigos, meus amigos, esses livros, vários carros
Most descriptive adjectives come after the noun (amigos queridos), but quantifiers and numbers go before.

How do I pronounce dez in European Portuguese?

In Portugal final -z is pronounced as the “sh” sound /ʃ/. The vowel is a reduced /ɨ/:
• dez → [dɨʃ] (almost like “dush” with a very short “u”)
In Brazil it’s often pronounced [dɛz], with a clear “z” and an “eh” vowel.

Can I write Eu tenho 10 amigos using the digit 10 instead of spelling dez?

Yes, especially in informal contexts (chat, notes, texting). In formal writing, style guides often recommend spelling out numbers from zero to ten as words:
• Tenho dez amigos (preferred in essays, reports)
• Tenho 10 amigos (acceptable in lists, tables, informal texts)