O museu abriu uma nova sala sobre a década de 1960.

The museum opened a new room about the 1960s decade.

Breakdown of O museu abriu uma nova sala sobre a década de 1960.

• de: of
• novo: new
• abrir: to open
• a sala: the room
• uma: a
• sobre: about
• o museu: the museum
• a década: the decade
• 1960: 1960

Questions & Answers about O museu abriu uma nova sala sobre a década de 1960.

Why is o museu preceded by the definite article o?

In Portuguese you almost always use a definite article before common nouns. Saying o museu corresponds directly to English the museum. Omitting o (just saying museu abriu…) would sound unnatural or incomplete in European Portuguese.

Why is abriu used here instead of abre or another tense?

Abriu is the preterite (pretérito perfeito) form of abrir, signaling a completed action in the past—“it opened.” If you said abre, that would be present tense (“it opens” or “it is opening”), which changes the meaning. To describe a past event, you need abriu.

What does uma nova sala mean, and why do we use uma?

Uma nova sala literally means “a new room” or “a new gallery.” The indefinite article uma corresponds to English a (or an), indicating that it’s one new room among possibly others, without specifying which one exactly.

What kind of sala is being referred to in a museum context?

Here, sala means an exhibition room or gallery within the museum—basically a dedicated space where a particular theme, period or collection is displayed.

Why is the preposition sobre used before a década de 1960? Could we use de instead?

Sobre means “about” or “on,” introducing the theme or topic of the room (in this case, the 1960s). You could sometimes hear de, as in uma sala de 1960, but that phrasing usually suggests “a room dating from 1960,” not “a room about the decade.” To express the idea of “a room about the 1960s,” you need sala sobre.

Why do we say a década de 1960 instead of just década 1960?

In Portuguese, when talking about a decade, you use:

1. The article + the word década (here a década)
2. The preposition de
3. The base year (1960)

So a década de 1960 = “the decade of the 1960s.” Skipping a or de would break that standard structure.

Could we use another expression for “the 1960s,” like os anos 60?

Yes. Os anos 60 is a common, more colloquial way to say “the ’60s.” It literally means “the years ’60.” Both a década de 1960 and os anos 60 are correct, but the first is a bit more formal.