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O respeito entre amigos é importante.

O respeito entre amigos é importante.
Respect between friends is important.
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Questions & Answers about O respeito entre amigos é importante.

Why is there O before respeito? In English we just say “Respect between friends is important,” without the.

In European Portuguese, general statements about a concept usually take the definite article:

  • O respeito é importante. – Respect is important.
  • A amizade é essencial. – Friendship is essential.

So O respeito here means “respect in general,” not a specific act of respect. Leaving the article out is possible in some contexts, but with abstract nouns like respeito, the article is very common and sounds more natural in a neutral sentence like this.

Can I say Respeito entre amigos é importante without the O?

You can say it, and people will understand, but:

  • O respeito entre amigos é importante. – feels like a normal, neutral sentence.
  • Respeito entre amigos é importante. – can sound a bit more headline‑like, slogan‑like, or slightly less natural in everyday speech.

In careful, standard European Portuguese, the version with the article (O respeito) is the safest and most idiomatic here.

Why is there no article before amigos? Why not entre os amigos?

Both are possible, but they do not mean exactly the same thing:

  • entre amigos – “between friends / among friends” in general, any friends. Generic, non‑specific.
  • entre os amigos – “between the friends,” referring to a specific group already known from context (e.g. our group of friends).

In this sentence, the idea is general, so entre amigos (no article) is more natural.

Why is it é importante (with ser) and not está importante (with estar)?

Portuguese uses:

  • ser for permanent, typical, or defining characteristics.
  • estar for temporary states or conditions.

Here importante describes an inherent quality of o respeito – respect (between friends) is by nature important, not just at this moment. So:

  • O respeito entre amigos é importante. – correct, natural.
  • O respeito entre amigos está importante. – sounds wrong or very strange in this context.

Adjectives like importante, necessário, essencial, possível usually go with ser when giving general truths or opinions.

Why is respeito singular? Could I say Respeitos entre amigos são importantes in the plural?

Respeito here is an uncountable abstract noun, like “respect” in English:

  • O respeito – the concept of respect.

Portuguese does not normally pluralize it in this meaning. Respeitos in the plural is unusual and would sound wrong in this sentence.

So you keep it singular:

  • O respeito entre amigos é importante.
    (not Os respeitos entre amigos são importantes.)
What does entre do here exactly? Is it “between” or “among”?

Entre is the preposition that corresponds to both:

  • between and
  • among

in English, depending on context.

So entre amigos can be translated as either:

  • “between friends”
  • “among friends”

depending on what sounds better in English. There is no grammatical difference in Portuguese; entre covers both.

Does entre ever combine with the article, like de + os = dos? Is there something like entros?

No. Entre never contracts with articles or pronouns.

You always say:

  • entre os amigos (not entros amigos)
  • entre as pessoas (not entras pessoas)

So the options are:

  • entre amigos
  • entre os amigos

But entre stays the same.

How do I know that respeito is masculine?

In this case, the clue is the ending:

  • Many nouns ending in -o are masculine: o livro, o carro, o respeito.

So you say:

  • o respeito (masculine), not a respeito.

Be careful: a respeito de is a different expression meaning “about / regarding” (e.g. a respeito de ti = “about you”). Here we are using respeito as a noun meaning “respect,” so it takes o.

Can I change the word order, for example Entre amigos, o respeito é importante or É importante o respeito entre amigos?

Yes, Portuguese allows some flexibility in word order for emphasis:

  1. O respeito entre amigos é importante.
    – Neutral, straightforward.

  2. Entre amigos, o respeito é importante.
    – Emphasizes the context “among friends” at the beginning.

  3. É importante o respeito entre amigos.
    – Focuses first on the idea “it is important,” with o respeito coming after.

All three are grammatically correct. The differences are about emphasis and style, not about correctness.

How is this sentence pronounced in European Portuguese? Anything tricky for an English speaker?

Approximate European Portuguese pronunciation (with English‑style hints):

  • O respeito – [oo hʁesh-PEY-too]

    • Initial r in respeito is a guttural h/ʁ sound (throat), not like English r.
    • Stress on -PEI- (-PEY-).

  • entre – [EN-treh]

    • The final e is a reduced, very short sound (like a quick uh/eh).

  • amigos – [uh-MEE-goosh] (European)

    • Stress on -MI-.
    • Final -s sounds like sh in most European accents.

  • é importante – [EH im-por-TAN-tuh]

    • é is open [ɛ], like “eh”.
    • Final -e in importante is again a short reduced vowel.

Spoken smoothly, it’s:

O respeito entre amigos é importante.
[oo hʁesh-PEY-too EN-treh uh-MEE-goosh EH im-por-TAN-tuh]