Breakdown of O Pedro acredita que o exame é fácil.
Questions & Answers about O Pedro acredita que o exame é fácil.
In European Portuguese, it’s very common to use the definite article before people’s names: o Pedro, a Maria, o João.
It usually doesn’t add any special meaning; it’s just the natural way people speak in Portugal. In more formal writing (or in some fixed expressions), the article can be omitted, but in everyday speech o Pedro is more common than plain Pedro.
No, it’s not wrong.
- O Pedro acredita… – feels more natural and conversational in Portugal.
- Pedro acredita… – feels a bit more formal, written, or neutral.
Both are grammatically correct in European Portuguese. In Brazilian Portuguese, however, the version without the article (Pedro acredita…) is the default in most regions.
Acredita is the 3rd person singular (he/she/it) of acreditar in the present tense:
- eu acredito – I believe
- tu acreditas – you (singular, informal) believe
- ele/ela/o Pedro acredita – he/she/Pedro believes
Since the subject is o Pedro (3rd person singular), the verb must be acredita.
All three can translate as to think in English, but they’re not identical:
- acreditar (que) – to believe (that), often a bit stronger, about belief or trust.
- O Pedro acredita que o exame é fácil. – Pedro believes the exam is easy.
- pensar (que) – to think (that), often more neutral, about having an opinion.
- O Pedro pensa que o exame é fácil. – Pedro thinks the exam is easy.
- achar (que) – very common in speech, often “to think / to feel / to find (that)”.
- O Pedro acha que o exame é fácil. – Pedro thinks/feels the exam is easy.
In this sentence, you could swap acredita for pensa or acha with only a small change in nuance; all would be natural.
Here, que is a conjunction meaning that and it introduces the subordinate clause o exame é fácil.
In Portuguese, you cannot normally drop this que the way you often drop that in English.
- Correct: O Pedro acredita que o exame é fácil.
- Incorrect: ✗ O Pedro acredita o exame é fácil.
O exame = the exam (a specific one, already known from context).
Um exame = an exam (not a specific one).
In your sentence, we’re usually talking about a particular exam Pedro is going to take, so Portuguese uses the definite article: o exame.
Portuguese distinguishes between ser and estar:
- ser (here é) – used for more permanent, essential, or typical characteristics.
- O exame é fácil. – The exam (by its nature/level) is easy.
- estar – used for temporary states or conditions.
You would only use estar with fácil in special or figurative contexts (for example, about a situation being easy at the moment), but for describing how hard/easy a test generally is, Portuguese uses ser: é fácil.
In affirmative sentences with verbs of belief (like acreditar, pensar, achar), Portuguese normally uses the indicative:
- O Pedro acredita que o exame é fácil. ✅
The subjunctive with these verbs is used mainly when the verb is negated or in questions that express doubt:
- O Pedro não acredita que o exame seja fácil. – Pedro doesn’t believe (that) the exam is easy.
- Acreditas que o exame seja fácil? – Do you believe the exam is easy? (with doubt)
So in your original affirmative sentence, é fácil (indicative) is the natural choice.
Adjectives ending in -e or -l (like fácil) usually have the same form for masculine and feminine singular:
- o exame é fácil – the exam is easy (masc.)
- a prova é fácil – the test is easy (fem.)
For plural, fácil becomes fáceis:
- Os exames são fáceis. – The exams are easy.
- As provas são fáceis. – The tests are easy.
You can say:
- O Pedro acredita que o exame é fácil. – neutral word order.
- Que o exame é fácil, o Pedro acredita. – very marked, literary/poetic.
You can have something like:
- O exame é fácil, acredita o Pedro. – “The exam is easy, Pedro believes,” but this sounds more like written style, for narration.
However, you cannot simply drop que and say ✗ O Pedro acredita o exame é fácil. The que is required to introduce the clause.