Breakdown of Se a febre piorar, vou tomar o remédio.
ir
to go
se
if
tomar
to take
o remédio
the medicine
a febre
the fever
piorar
to worsen
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Portuguese grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Se a febre piorar, vou tomar o remédio.
What tense and mood is piorar in Se a febre piorar?
It’s the future subjunctive, used in Portuguese to express possible or conditional events in the future after se. For regular -ar verbs, the third-person singular form looks identical to the infinitive, so piorar here means “if the fever worsens.”
Why use the future subjunctive and not the present indicative or present subjunctive?
Portuguese normally uses the future subjunctive in if/when clauses that refer to future possibilities.
- Present indicative (e.g. se a febre piora) appears in informal speech but is less precise.
- Present subjunctive (e.g. se a febre piore) is triggered by conjunctions like caso or for stylistically marked conditions.
The standard “real condition” form is se- future subjunctive.
Could I say Se a febre fica pior instead of piorar?
Yes. Se a febre ficar pior (“if the fever becomes worse”) is perfectly valid. Ficar pior is a periphrastic way to express “to get worse,” while piorar is more direct (“to worsen”).
Why is vou tomar used instead of the simple future tomarei?
Portuguese often prefers the periphrastic future (ir + infinitive) in everyday speech because it sounds more immediate:
- Vou tomar = “I’m going to take.”
- Tomarei = “I will take,” which is grammatically correct but more formal or literary.
Why are there definite articles in a febre and o remédio?
When talking about a specific fever you have or a known medicine, Portuguese uses the definite article. It’s like saying “the fever” and “the medicine” in English. Without them you’d sound vague or ungrammatical in this context.
Could I use um remédio instead of o remédio?
Use um remédio (“some medicine”) if you mean any generic medicine. Here the speaker refers to a particular, already-mentioned treatment, so o remédio is the correct choice.
Why is the subject pronoun eu omitted in vou tomar?
Portuguese verb endings indicate the subject clearly, so pronouns like eu are often dropped unless you need emphasis. Vou alone already means “I’m going.”
Can I reverse the clauses to say Vou tomar o remédio se a febre piorar?
Yes. You can put the main clause first and the se-clause second. In that case you don’t need a comma: Vou tomar o remédio se a febre piorar.
Why is tomar used for taking medicine? Could I use beber or aplicar?
Tomar is the general verb for ingesting pills, liquids or food. Use beber specifically for drinking a liquid medicine (e.g. “beber xarope”) and aplicar for applying a cream or ointment. Tomar o remédio is the usual way to say “take the medicine.”