Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Se tivesses visto o meu progresso no último ano, terias ficado orgulhoso e com menos stress. - If you had seen my progress in the last year, you would have been proud and less stressed.

Tivesses visto is a form of the pluperfect (past perfect) subjunctive, in Portuguese grammar: pretérito mais-que-perfeito do conjuntivo (composto).

Structure:

auxiliary verb ter in the imperfect subjunctive:
ter → tivesse, tivesses, tivéssemos, tivessem
Here: tivesses (2nd person singular, tu)
plus past participle of the main verb:
ver → visto

So:

tivesses visto = had seen

It is used because:

the clause is introduced by se (if), expressing a hypothetical, unreal condition in the past;
and the main clause describes what would have happened as a result.

So it matches the English pattern:

If you had seen my progress …, you would have been proud…

Why is it tivesses visto (with ter) and not just visses from the verb ver?

Both structures exist, but they are not identical in meaning or feel.

Tivesses visto:
- emphasizes that the action of seeing is completed before the result.
- literally: if you had had seen → in normal English: if you had seen.
- fits very naturally with a result clause in the conditional perfect (terias ficado).
Visses:
- is the imperfect subjunctive of ver.
- se visses o meu progresso could be used in different ways, often with a slightly more general or less explicitly “before this other past moment” feel, and typically with a different main clause tense (for example, se visses o meu progresso, ficarias orgulhoso = if you saw / if you could see my progress, you would be proud).

In this specific sentence, because we are clearly talking about an unreal past situation (you did not see it) with a hypothetical past result, tivesses visto is the most precise and standard choice.

What tense is terias ficado, and how does it relate to tivesses visto?

Terias ficado is the conditional perfect (also called the composed conditional):

auxiliary verb ter in the simple conditional:
ter → teria, terias, teríamos, teriam
Here: terias (2nd person singular)
plus past participle of the main verb:
ficar → ficado

So:

terias ficado = would have been / would have become

The combination:

Se tivesses visto …, terias ficado …
mirrors English:
If you had seen …, you would have been …

This is the standard pattern for an unreal condition in the past:

past perfect subjunctive in the se-clause
conditional perfect in the result clause.

Could I say tinhas ficado instead of terias ficado?

Yes, in European Portuguese, this is quite common in speech:

Se tivesses visto o meu progresso no último ano, tinhas ficado orgulhoso e com menos stress.

This uses:

tinhas ficado = pluperfect indicative of ficar (ter in the imperfect + participle)

Meaning-wise, for everyday conversation, tinhas ficado and terias ficado are very close, and most native speakers would not feel a strong difference here.

Formal grammar:

tivesses visto …, terias ficado is the more textbook combination.
tivesses visto …, tinhas ficado is extremely natural and frequent in Portugal, especially in speech.

Why is it tivesses and terias, not tivesse and teria?

Because the sentence is using the informal second person singular tu:

Conjugation of ter:

Subjunctive imperfect:
eu tivesse
tu tivesses
ele / ela / você tivesse
Conditional:
eu teria
tu terias
ele / ela / você teria

So:

tivesses and terias agree with the implied subject tu.

If you wanted to use você (or o senhor / a senhora, formal), you would use 3rd person forms:

Se tivesse visto o meu progresso no último ano, teria ficado orgulhoso e com menos stress.
(talking to você / o senhor / a senhora)

Why is the adjective orgulhoso in the masculine form, and how would it change if talking to a woman?

Adjectives in Portuguese agree in gender and number with the person or thing they describe.

Here, orgulhoso refers to you (the person being addressed):

if that person is male: orgulhoso
if that person is female: orgulhosa

So:

to a man:
terias ficado orgulhoso e com menos stress
to a woman:
terias ficado orgulhosa e com menos stress

For plural:

to a group of men / mixed group: orgulhosos
to a group of women only: orgulhosas

Why do we say o meu progresso and not just meu progresso?

In European Portuguese, it is very common to use the definite article with possessives:

o meu progresso
a minha casa
os meus amigos

So:

o meu progresso literally: the my progress
but functionally: my progress

In Portugal, o meu progresso sounds more natural and neutral than simply meu progresso.
In Brazilian Portuguese, dropping the article (meu progresso) is more frequent and neutral.

You can technically say meu progresso in Portugal, but:

it often sounds a bit more emphatic, poetic, or stylized,
whereas o meu progresso is the default in everyday speech.

What does no último ano mean exactly, and why use último ano instead of ano passado?

No último ano literally is:

em
- o → no
último ano = last year / the last year

So no último ano means:

in the last year
often understood as over the last 12 months or during the past year (up to now).

Nuance vs no ano passado:

no último ano:
emphasises the most recent period of 12 months, or a continuous period leading up to now.
no ano passado:
typically means last year in the calendar sense (the year before the current one).

In many contexts they overlap, but no último ano works especially well when talking about progress over the recent period, as in this sentence.

What does no stand for in no último ano?

No is a contraction of the preposition em plus the masculine singular article o:

em
- o → no

So:

no último ano literally: in the last year
no carro: in the car
no livro: in the book / on the book

Similarly:

na = em
- a (feminine singular)
nos = em
- os (masculine plural)
nas = em
- as (feminine plural)

Why is there a comma after ano? Is it required?

Yes, the comma in:

Se tivesses visto o meu progresso no último ano, terias ficado…

is standard and recommended.

In Portuguese:

when a dependent clause (like a se-clause expressing condition) comes before the main clause, it is normally followed by a comma.
when it comes after, the comma is often omitted:
- Terias ficado orgulhoso e com menos stress se tivesses visto o meu progresso no último ano.

So:

[Se-clause], [main clause]. → comma is usual.
[Main clause] [se-clause]. → comma often omitted unless needed for clarity.

What does com menos stress literally mean, and why use com here?

Literally:

com = with
menos = less
stress = stress

So com menos stress = with less stress, meaning less stressed / under less stress.

Why com:

Portuguese very often uses com + noun to express a state or condition:
- com fome = hungry (with hunger)
- com sede = thirsty (with thirst)
- com sono = sleepy (with sleepiness)
- com medo = afraid (with fear)

Similarly, com menos stress is a natural way to say in a condition of having less stress.

You could also say:

menos stressado / menos stressada = less stressed (adjective), but com menos stress is very idiomatic and sounds very natural.

Is stress here the same as English stress, and how is it treated grammatically in Portuguese?

Yes, stress here is the same concept and spelling as in English. It is an English loanword.

Grammatically:

it is usually treated as a masculine noun: o stress
in this sentence it appears without an article: menos stress (just like menos trabalho, menos dinheiro).

Pronunciation in European Portuguese:

stress is typically pronounced a bit like shtress or stréss, with a strong final s sound.

In Brazilian Portuguese, you will also see the spelling estresse (adapted form), but in Portugal stress is standard.

Can I change the word order, for example: Terias ficado orgulhoso e com menos stress se tivesses visto o meu progresso no último ano?

Yes, that word order is perfectly correct:

Terias ficado orgulhoso e com menos stress se tivesses visto o meu progresso no último ano.

Meaning and grammar remain the same. The only differences:

The original version, with se-clause first, slightly emphasises the condition.
The reordered version, with the result first, emphasises the consequence.

Both are natural in European Portuguese.

How would the pronunciation of some key words roughly sound to an English speaker (European Portuguese)?

Very approximate guides (not strict phonetics):

Se ≈ suh (very short, almost like the first part of sir without the r)
tivesses ≈ chee-VESS-esh (final -esh like English esh with a soft sh)
visto ≈ VEESH-too (the s sounds like English sh, short final oo)
progresso ≈ pro-GREH-soo
último ≈ OOL-chee-moo (the t can sound like ch in many accents)
terias ≈ teh-REE-ash
ficado ≈ fee-KAH-doo
orgulhoso ≈ or-goo-LYO-zoo (the lh in -lhos- is like the lli in million)
stress ≈ STRÉSS (strong final s)

These are only approximations, but they can help you get close to the European Portuguese sound.