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Questions & Answers about Eu estudo inglês com a Maria.
Why is there an "a" before Maria?
In European Portuguese, personal names commonly take the definite article. So you say a Maria, o João, etc. It means "the" and sounds natural in everyday speech. When directly addressing someone, you normally drop it: Ó Maria!
Can I omit the article and say "com Maria"?
In European Portuguese, omitting the article with names usually sounds formal, journalistic, or list-like. In everyday speech you keep it: com a Maria. In Brazilian Portuguese, dropping the article with names is common in many regions: com Maria.
Is the "a" in "com a Maria" the preposition "to"? Do I ever write "com à Maria"?
Here a is the feminine singular definite article ("the"), not the preposition "to". The crasis à only happens when preposition a + article a merge, as in Vou à escola ("I go to the school"). After com, there is no crasis, so it stays com a Maria, never com à Maria.
Do I need to say "o inglês" after "estudo," or just "inglês"?
After verbs like estudar, falar, aprender, ensinar, languages are usually used without an article: Estudo inglês. Use the article when specifying or restricting: Estudo o inglês britânico; Estudo o inglês que se fala na Índia.
Can I drop the subject pronoun "Eu"?
Yes. Portuguese is a pro‑drop language; the verb ending shows the subject. Estudo inglês com a Maria is perfectly natural. Keep Eu for emphasis or contrast: Eu estudo inglês, mas ela estuda espanhol.
How do I say I'm studying right now?
In European Portuguese, use estar a + infinitive: Estou a estudar inglês com a Maria (agora). In Brazilian Portuguese you'd say Estou estudando inglês com a Maria. The simple present Eu estudo usually means a habit or regular activity.
How do I make it negative?
Place não before the verb: Eu não estudo inglês com a Maria. For the progressive: Eu não estou a estudar inglês com a Maria.
How do you pronounce the sentence in European Portuguese?
Approximate: esh-TOO-do eeng-GLAYSH kohm ah mah-REE-ah. IPA (EP): [ɨʃˈtuðu ĩŋˈɡleʃ kõ mɐ mɐˈɾiɐ]. Notes: initial es- often sounds like [ʃ]; final -s in inglês is [ʃ]; com has a nasal vowel (like French nasal "on").
Why isn't "inglês" capitalized?
In Portuguese, names of languages and nationalities are written in lower case unless they start a sentence: inglês, português, espanhol. Country names and demonyms used as proper names do take capitals: Inglaterra, Reino Unido.
What does the accent in "inglês" do?
The circumflex ê marks the stressed syllable and a closed-mid vowel sound. It tells you to stress the last syllable: in-glês, pronounced roughly "glaysh" at the end in EP.
Why is it "estudo" and not "estudos"?
Estudo is the verb form "I study" (1st person singular present of estudar). Estudos is a noun meaning "studies": Os meus estudos. Mini conjugation (present): eu estudo, tu estudas, ele/ela estuda, nós estudamos, vocês/eles estudam.
Can I change the word order for emphasis?
Yes, but keep it natural. Neutral: Eu estudo inglês com a Maria. Emphasis by fronting: Com a Maria, (eu) estudo inglês. You can also front the object: Inglês (eu) estudo com a Maria, though that is more marked.
How do I replace "a Maria" with a pronoun?
Use object pronouns after com:
- com ela (with her), com ele (with him)
- comigo, contigo, consigo (with me/you/polite you)
- connosco, convosco (with us/with you plural, EP spelling)
- com eles/elas (with them) Note: consigo can mean "with you (formal)" or "with him/her" depending on context.
What changes if the person is a man?
Use the masculine article: com o Mário, com o João. The rest stays the same.
How can I specify which Maria I mean?
Add identifiers:
- com a Maria Silva
- com a Maria da contabilidade ("from accounting")
- com a minha amiga Maria / com a professora Maria
Should I translate names like Maria to Mary?
In real-life conversation you use the person's actual name, so Maria stays Maria. In translations of historical/biblical or well-known figures, Portuguese often localizes names (e.g., Mary → Maria), but you don't change your classmate's name.
Is "eu" capitalized?
No. eu is only capitalized at the beginning of a sentence or in titles. In the middle of a sentence it stays lower case: Ela e eu estudamos inglês.