Breakdown of Na segunda vou estudar português com o Pedro.
Questions & Answers about Na segunda vou estudar português com o Pedro.
Na is a contraction of em + a (in/on + the).
- em + a segunda (feira) → na segunda (feira)
So na segunda literally means “on the Monday”, which in normal English is just “on Monday”.
You don’t say em segunda in this context; with days of the week you normally use em + definite article, and it contracts: no / na.
Yes, segunda is the feminine form of segundo (“second”). In European Portuguese, the weekdays from Monday to Friday are actually old religious expressions:
- segunda(-feira) = literally “second (day of the fair)”, used for Monday
- terça(-feira) = “third” = Tuesday
- quarta(-feira) = “fourth” = Wednesday
- quinta(-feira) = “fifth” = Thursday
- sexta(-feira) = “sixth” = Friday
In everyday speech, people often drop -feira and just say segunda, terça, etc., but the meaning is still the weekday, not the number.
- na segunda = on Monday (a specific Monday) – usually the next one coming, or one that context makes clear.
- à segunda (from a + a with a grave accent) = on Mondays, every Monday, on Mondays in general (a habitual action).
So:
Na segunda vou estudar português com o Pedro.
→ On that Monday (e.g. next Monday) I’m going to study Portuguese with Pedro.À segunda estudo português com o Pedro.
→ On Mondays (every Monday), I study Portuguese with Pedro.
The full form is a segunda-feira (feminine noun), so segunda inherits that gender.
- a segunda-feira → feminine
- shortened form: a segunda → still feminine
Other days:
- o domingo (Sunday) – masculine
- a segunda(-feira), a terça(-feira), a quarta(-feira), a quinta(-feira), a sexta(-feira) – feminine
- o sábado (Saturday) – masculine
Because segunda is feminine, you must use a and therefore na (em + a).
Yes, you can say:
- Na segunda vou estudar português…
- Na segunda-feira vou estudar português…
Both are correct and natural.
Na segunda-feira is a bit more explicit/formal; na segunda is shorter and very common in speech. The meaning in this sentence is the same: “on Monday”.
Vou estudar is literally “I go to study”, but in practice it’s the near future (futuro próximo):
- vou = present tense of ir (“to go”), 1st person singular
- estudar = infinitive (“to study”)
Together: vou estudar ≈ English “I’m going to study” (future).
It’s the most common way to talk about planned future actions in spoken Portuguese. The simple future estudarei exists but is less common in everyday speech and can feel more formal or written.
In this sentence, vou estudar is understood as future (“I’m going to study (then)”), especially with a time expression (na segunda).
It can be present with a more literal “I go to study” meaning, but then you’d usually need more context to show regularity, for example:
- Todos os dias vou estudar à biblioteca.
→ Every day, I go to study at the library.
With na segunda, the default reading is future.
In Portuguese, names of languages and nationalities are written with a lowercase initial letter, unless they are at the start of a sentence or part of a proper title.
So you write:
- português, inglês, francês, espanhol
but:
- O Português Europeu (start of a title)
- Português at the start of a sentence.
The same rule applies to segunda: weekdays also start with lowercase letters in the middle of a sentence.
Both are possible, but they’re used a bit differently:
- vou estudar português – more general: “I’m going to study Portuguese (as a language / in general)”.
- vou estudar o português – more specific: “I’m going to study (the) Portuguese (language)”, often with a slightly more concrete or previously mentioned referent (e.g. a particular course, a specific aspect of Portuguese).
After verbs like falar, estudar, aprender, ensinar, learners often drop the article when talking about languages in general:
- Estudo português e inglês.
- Quero aprender francês.
In European Portuguese, it is very common (and natural) to use the definite article with personal names:
- o Pedro, a Maria, o João, a Ana
So:
- com o Pedro = with Pedro
- com a Maria = with Maria
You can drop the article (com Pedro), but in European Portuguese this can sound a bit more formal, distant, or sometimes stylistic. The everyday pattern is com o Pedro.
Yes, that’s fine. Some natural possibilities:
- Na segunda vou estudar português com o Pedro.
- Vou estudar português com o Pedro na segunda.
- Na segunda, vou estudar português com o Pedro. (with a comma, also OK in writing)
The meaning is the same. Putting Na segunda at the beginning slightly emphasizes the time (“As for Monday…”), while putting it at the end is a bit more neutral. All are grammatical.
Yes:
- Na segunda eu vou estudar português com o Pedro.
Portuguese usually omits subject pronouns (eu, tu, ele…) because the verb ending already shows the person. Adding eu makes the subject explicit and can add emphasis or contrast:
- Na segunda eu vou estudar português, tu vais trabalhar.
→ On Monday I am going to study Portuguese, you are going to work.
By default, Na segunda… refers to the next Monday that makes sense in the context, usually the next one in time.
If today is Wednesday and you say Na segunda vou estudar português com o Pedro, people will normally understand next Monday. Context (calendar, prior conversation) can shift it to “this past Monday” or a more distant Monday, but without extra information it usually means the upcoming Monday.