No verão, eu guardo a manta no armário.

In summer, I keep the blanket in the cupboard.

Breakdown of No verão, eu guardo a manta no armário.

• eu: I
• em: in
• guardar: to keep
• o armário: the cupboard
• o verão: the summer
• a manta: the blanket

Questions & Answers about No verão, eu guardo a manta no armário.

In No verão, what is no and why is there a definite article?

• no is the contraction of em + o (in + the).
• verão is masculine, so it takes o.
• Portuguese typically uses the definite article with seasons when speaking generally. No verão = “in (the) summer” (even though English usually drops “the” here).
• You cannot say em o verão; you must contract to no.

Do I have to include eu, or can I just say No verão, guardo a manta no armário?

You can drop eu. Portuguese is a pro‑drop language, and the verb ending in guardo already shows the subject is “I.” Keep eu only for emphasis or contrast: No verão, eu guardo… (não tu).

Is the comma after No verão required?

It’s optional. A comma after a fronted time phrase is common and helps readability, but No verão guardo a manta no armário is also fine.

Why is the present tense (guardo) used here? Is it habitual?

Yes. Guardo (present) expresses a habitual action: something you do every summer. For a specific future instance, use:

• Near future: Vou guardar a manta no armário.
• Simple future (more formal): Guardarei a manta no armário.
• Past: No verão passado, guardei a manta no armário.

What exactly does guardar mean? Does it also mean “to guard” or “to save”?

• Most common here: to put away/store/keep (physically). Example: guardar a manta no armário.
• Also “to keep/retain”: Guarda o recibo.
• “To set aside/reserve”: Guardei um pedaço para ti.
• In computing, both guardar and salvar are used for “save,” with guardar very common in Portugal.
• “To guard/protect” is possible in contexts like guardar a entrada, but that’s not the sense here.

How do I say “I put it away” (referring to the blanket)? Where does the pronoun go?

• Feminine singular object pronoun is a (for a manta).
• Default in European Portuguese is enclisis (after the verb): No verão, guardo-a no armário.
• With a proclisis trigger like não, the pronoun goes before the verb: Não a guardo no armário.
• With a periphrastic future, attach to the infinitive: Vou guardá-la no armário.

Why a manta but no armário?

• manta is feminine, so a manta (the blanket).
• armário is masculine, so o armário; with em + o it becomes no armário.
• If you’re not talking about a specific blanket, use uma manta. In European Portuguese, possessives normally take an article: a minha manta.

Why no armário and not para o armário?

• em/no expresses location (“in/inside”).
• para expresses direction or purpose (“to/for”). With guardar, you store something in a place: guardar … no armário. Saying guardar … para o armário is unnatural unless you use a set phrase like para dentro do armário (“into the wardrobe”).

Can I move the time phrase? Where is it most natural?

Yes. All are acceptable:

• No verão, (eu) guardo a manta no armário.
• (Eu) guardo a manta no armário no verão.
• (Eu), no verão, guardo a manta no armário. (more emphatic) Placing no verão first is very natural.

How do no/na/nos/nas work?

They’re contractions of em (in/on/at) + the definite article:

• em + o = no (masc. sing.)
• em + a = na (fem. sing.)
• em + os = nos (masc. pl.)
• em + as = nas (fem. pl.) Examples: no verão, na primavera, nos armários, nas gavetas.

How do I pronounce the sentence (European Portuguese)?

Approximation:

• No verão: nu vɨ-RÃW (the ão is a nasal “ow”).
• eu: ew.
• guardo: GWAHR-doo (the gu before a sounds like “gw”).
• a manta: a MAHN-tɐ (final a is a relaxed “uh”).
• no armário: nu ar-MA-ryoo (single r inside words is a light tap; ário sounds like “AH-ryoo”). Overall: nu vɨ-RÃW, ew GWAHR-doo a MAHN-tɐ nu ar-MA-ryoo.

Are seasons capitalized in Portuguese?

No. verão, outono, inverno, primavera are written in lowercase.

What’s the difference between armário, roupeiro, and guarda-fatos?

• armário: a general cupboard/cabinet; also used for wardrobes.
• roupeiro / guarda-fatos: wardrobe/closet specifically for clothes (Portugal). In Brazil, it’s guarda-roupa. In a kitchen you’d normally say armário (e.g., armário da cozinha).

Is manta the same as cobertor or edredão?

• manta: blanket/throw (often lighter, also used on sofas).
• cobertor: blanket, typically heavier and for beds.
• edredão: duvet/comforter.

How do I say it in the plural (summers/blankets/wardrobes)?

• Nos verões, guardo as mantas nos armários. Note the plural of -ão nouns: verão → verões.

Could I use pôr, meter, or arrumar instead of guardar?

Yes, with slight nuances:

• pôr/colocar: to put/place (neutral): No verão, ponho a manta no armário.
• meter: to put (colloquial in Portugal): Meto a manta no armário.
• arrumar: to tidy/put away: Arrumo a manta no armário. Guardar emphasizes keeping/storing.