Este casaco é prático no inverno.

This coat is practical in winter.

Breakdown of Este casaco é prático no inverno.

• ser: to be
• em: in
• este: this
• o casaco: the coat
• o inverno: the winter
• prático: practical

Questions & Answers about Este casaco é prático no inverno.

Why is it este and not esse or aquele?

Portuguese has three main demonstratives that roughly correspond to this / that / that (over there):

• este – refers to something close to the speaker (this)
• esse – refers to something close to the listener or just mentioned (that)
• aquele – refers to something far from both people (that over there)

In Este casaco, the speaker is usually physically holding, wearing, or touching the coat, or it is very obviously right next to them.
So este is used because the coat is understood as near the speaker.

If it were near the listener, you might say:

• Esse casaco é prático no inverno. – That coat (near you) is practical in winter.

If it were farther away from both:

• Aquele casaco é prático no inverno. – That coat (over there) is practical in winter.

What does casaco mean exactly? Is it a “coat” or a “jacket”?

In European Portuguese, casaco is a fairly general word for an outer garment worn over other clothes, especially for warmth. It usually corresponds to coat or jacket, depending on the context.

• A heavy winter coat: um casaco de inverno
• A lighter jacket: um casaco de ganga – a denim jacket

More specific words exist, but they’re less general:

• sobretudo – an overcoat
• blusão – more like a shorter, casual jacket (bomber-style, leather jacket, etc.)

So Este casaco é prático no inverno can be translated naturally as:

• This coat is practical in winter. or
• This jacket is practical in winter. depending on the type of garment you have in mind.

Why is the verb é used here and not está? What is the difference between ser and estar in this sentence?

É is the 3rd person singular of ser.
Está is the 3rd person singular of estar.

In Este casaco é prático no inverno, ser is used because the sentence is describing a characteristic (a typical, inherent property) of the coat: it is (by nature) practical for winter.

Simple rule of thumb:

• Use ser for essential or typical qualities:

  • Este casaco é prático. – This coat is practical.
  • O casaco é quente. – The coat is warm.

• Use estar for temporary states or conditions:

  • O casaco está molhado. – The coat is wet (right now).
  • O casaco está sujo. – The coat is dirty (now).

You would not normally say:

• ✗ Este casaco está prático no inverno.

That sounds wrong in Portuguese, because “being practical” is seen as a general quality, not a temporary state.

What exactly does prático mean here? Is it just “practical”?

In this sentence, prático means practical, convenient, easy/comfortable to use.

Este casaco é prático no inverno can imply things like:

• It’s easy to wear with many outfits.
• It keeps you warm without being too heavy.
• It has useful pockets, zips, a hood, etc.
• It’s suitable for everyday winter use.

Other common meanings of prático in Portuguese include:

• Hands-on, not theoretical:
  • uma aula prática – a practical class (lab, workshop)
• Efficient / down-to-earth (about people):
  • Ela é muito prática. – She’s very practical.

So in this sentence, think “user-friendly / convenient for winter” rather than just “not theoretical.”

Why do we say no inverno and not em inverno?

No is a contraction of the preposition em (in) + the masculine singular definite article o (the):

• em + o = no

So:

• no inverno literally = em o inverno = in the winter

In Portuguese, with seasons you normally use em plus the article:

• no inverno – in (the) winter
• na primavera – in (the) spring
• no verão – in (the) summer
• no outono – in (the) autumn/fall

Saying em inverno (without the article) is not natural. You need the contraction:

• ✔ no inverno
• ✗ em inverno

Could I say para o inverno instead of no inverno? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say para o inverno, and it changes the nuance slightly:

• É prático no inverno.
  Focus: during winter – when you are in the winter season, it is practical.

• É prático para o inverno.
  Focus: for winter / for use in winter – it is suitable or appropriate as winter clothing (e.g. when buying it in autumn).

Both are correct; the original sentence no inverno emphasises how it behaves in winter, while para o inverno emphasises that it is appropriate for winter.

What does no exactly consist of, grammatically?

No is a contraction (a combination of two words):

• em (in, on, at)
• o (the – masculine singular)
  = no

Other similar contractions:

• em + a = na
• em + os = nos
• em + as = nas

Examples:

• no carro – in the car
• na casa – in the house
• nos livros – in the books
• nas férias – on (the) holidays/vacation

In normal, correct Portuguese, you almost always use these contractions instead of separating em and the article.

Why is everything masculine: este casaco é prático? How does the agreement work?

In Portuguese, adjectives and demonstratives agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.

The noun casaco is masculine singular, so:

• Demonstrative: este (this – masculine singular)
• Adjective: prático (practical – masculine singular)

Agreement pattern:

• Masculine singular:
  este casaco é prático.

• Masculine plural:
  estes casacos são práticos. – These coats are practical.

• Feminine singular (e.g. camisola – sweater/jumper):
  Esta camisola é prática. – This sweater is practical.

• Feminine plural:
  Estas camisolas são práticas. – These sweaters are practical.

So este and prático must match casaco in gender (masculine) and number (singular).

Could I leave out este and just say O casaco é prático no inverno?

Yes, you can. The meaning becomes slightly more general:

• Este casaco é prático no inverno.
  Clearly refers to this specific coat (e.g. the one I’m wearing/holding).

• O casaco é prático no inverno.
  Depending on context, it could mean:

  • The coat (we both know which one) is practical in winter, or
  • In a more general statement: The coat (as a type of clothing) is practical in winter.

The demonstrative este makes it unmistakably “this coat here”.

Is the word order fixed? Could I say Este prático casaco é no inverno?

No, Este prático casaco é no inverno is not correct.

In Portuguese:

1. When you describe a noun with ser:

   • Subject + ser
     • adjective
       Este casaco é prático. – This coat is practical.

2. When the adjective directly modifies the noun:

   • Noun + adjective (most common order)
     um casaco prático – a practical coat

So, correct patterns:

• Este casaco é prático no inverno.
• Este é um casaco prático para o inverno.

Putting prático before casaco (prático casaco) is unusual and normally wrong, except in certain fixed expressions or poetic/literary style.

Should inverno be capitalized in Portuguese, like Winter in English sometimes is?

No. In Portuguese, names of seasons are not capitalized:

• o inverno – winter
• a primavera – spring
• o verão – summer
• o outono – autumn/fall

So you should write:

• no inverno
  not
• ✗ no Inverno

How would this sentence change in the plural, for “These coats are practical in winter”?

You need to make the demonstrative, the noun, the verb, and the adjective plural:

• Estes casacos são práticos no inverno.

Breakdown:

• este → estes (this → these, masculine plural)
• casaco → casacos (coat → coats)
• é → são (is → are, 3rd person plural of ser)
• prático → práticos (practical → practical, masculine plural)
• no inverno stays the same (the noun inverno is singular because it’s one season).