ELONIO
Log inSign up

O professor incentiva os alunos a ler mais livros.

O professor incentiva os alunos a ler mais livros.
The teacher encourages the students to read more books.
FromLesson 28inHardcore Portuguese (Portugal)

Questions & Answers about O professor incentiva os alunos a ler mais livros.

Why is there a a before ler?
In Portuguese, the verb incentivar is a catenative verb that requires the preposition a before another verb in the infinitive. The pattern is incentivar alguém a fazer algo, similar to English “encourage someone to do something.” Without a, the structure would be ungrammatical.
Can the infinitive ler be inflected to agree with os alunos?
Yes. Portuguese has a personal infinitive that agrees with its subject. You can say O professor incentiva os alunos a lerem mais livros. Here lerem shows that os alunos is the subject of the infinitive, but this form is slightly more formal or emphatic than the impersonal ler.
Could we use que + the subjunctive instead of a + infinitive?

You can, but it’s less common. If you use que, you must switch to the subjunctive:
O professor incentiva que os alunos leiam mais livros.
However, in everyday European Portuguese, incentivar alguém a + infinitive is preferred.

Why does os alunos take a definite article here? In English we don’t say “the students” in that general sense.
Portuguese uses definite articles much more frequently than English, even with general groups. Os alunos refers to “the students” (the ones in that class or context). Omitting the article (professor incentiva alunos…) sounds odd in European Portuguese.
How do you replace os alunos with a clitic pronoun?

In European Portuguese affirmative clauses, object pronouns attach after the verb (enclisis). So os alunos → os, and you get:
O professor incentiva-os a ler mais livros.

Can the subject O professor be omitted?
Yes. Portuguese is a pro-drop language. You can say Incentiva os alunos a ler mais livros if context makes it clear who is encouraging. But including O professor adds clarity or emphasis.
Where is the stress in incentiva, and how do you pronounce the final r in ler?

incentiva is stressed on the penultimate syllable: in-cen-TI-va.
In European Portuguese, the final r in ler is often pronounced as a soft, voiced sound [ʁ] (like a mild French r), sometimes almost like an h in casual speech.

AI Language TutorTry it ↗
“What's the best way to learn Portuguese grammar?”
Portuguese grammar becomes intuitive with practice. Focus on understanding the core patterns first — how sentences are structured, how verbs change form, and how words relate to each other. Our course breaks these concepts into small lessons so you can build understanding step by step.

Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor

Start learning Portuguese

Master Portuguese — from O professor incentiva os alunos a ler mais livros to fluency

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
  • ✓Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
  • ✓Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
  • ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions
Start learning Portuguese→