Breakdown of Eu imprimo a página do relatório antes de sair de casa.
eu
I
de
of
a casa
the house
sair
to leave
antes
before
imprimir
to print
o relatório
the report
a página
the page
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Questions & Answers about Eu imprimo a página do relatório antes de sair de casa.
Why is the verb imprimo used in the present tense to refer to a future action?
In European Portuguese it’s common to use the present indicative for near-future events when there’s a clear time reference. Here, antes de sair de casa sets the future context, so imprimo (“I print”) implies “I will print… before I leave home.”
Can I drop the subject pronoun eu and just say Imprimo a página do relatório antes de sair de casa?
Yes. Portuguese verb endings already indicate the subject, so including eu is optional and often omitted in everyday speech:
Imprimo a página do relatório antes de sair de casa.
What does do in da página do relatório stand for?
Do is the contraction of de + o, meaning “of the” (masculine singular). So a página do relatório literally means “the page of the report.”
Why is there a definite article a before página? Could I say uma página do relatório instead?
Using a página signals that it’s a specific page you have in mind. If you mean any page, you can say uma página do relatório, but then it sounds non-specific: “some page of the report.”
Why is it antes de sair and not antes que sair?
When the subject stays the same and you have an infinitive, Portuguese grammar requires antes de + infinitive.
Antes que takes a new subject and the subjunctive: e.g. antes que eu saia de casa.
Why is there no article before casa in sair de casa?
Sair de casa is a fixed expression meaning “to leave home” in general (one’s own home). You only add an article if you specify someone else’s house:
Saí da casa do João (“I left João’s house”).
Could I say vou imprimir a página do relatório antes de sair de casa instead of imprimo?
Absolutely. Vou imprimir (ir + infinitive) is the periphrastic future and is widely used, especially in speech. Both forms describe a planned action.
Is it acceptable to use printar instead of imprimir?
Printar is a Brazilian Portuguese anglicism and considered informal. In Portugal, you should use imprimir, especially in formal contexts.