Nós precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos errados.

We need courage to admit when we are wrong.

Breakdown of Nós precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos errados.

• estar: to be
• nós: we
• precisar de: to need
• quando: when
• para: to
• errado: wrong
• a coragem: the courage
• admitir: to admit

Questions & Answers about Nós precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos errados.

Why does the sentence say precisamos de coragem instead of precisamos coragem?

In European Portuguese, when precisar means “to need”, it is normally used with the preposition de:

• Precisamos de coragem. = We need courage.

Without de, precisar tends to mean “to specify / to make precise”, not “to need”:

• Precisa dizer melhor o que quer. = He/She needs to make clearer what he/she wants.

So in Portugal, precisar de + noun is the standard, natural way to say “to need something”, and *precisamos coragem sounds wrong or foreign-influenced.

Is Precisamos de coragem without nós also correct?

Yes, completely correct:

• Nós precisamos de coragem…
• Precisamos de coragem…

Both are fine. Portuguese is a pro‑drop language, which means subject pronouns are often omitted because the verb ending (-mos) already tells you the subject is “we”.

Why is it coragem (singular) and not something like coragens?

Coragem is generally an uncountable (mass) noun, like “courage” in English. You normally don’t say “three courages”; you just say “courage”, “a lot of courage”, etc.

The same in Portuguese:

• Muita coragem = a lot of courage
• Alguma coragem = some courage

The plural coragens exists but is rare and stylistic (for example, talking about “different kinds of courage”). In everyday speech, you’ll almost always see coragem in the singular.

Why is it para admitirmos and not just para admitir?

Admitirmos is a personal (inflected) infinitive, showing explicitly that the subject is “we” (nós):

• para admitir = in order to admit (subject not expressed)
• para admitirmos = in order for us to admit

In this sentence the subject is already clear from nós precisamos, so both are grammatically possible:

• Nós precisamos de coragem para admitir quando estamos errados.
• Nós precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos errados.

European Portuguese tends to use the personal infinitive more often than Brazilian Portuguese, especially when the subject is clear and you want to emphasise “we ourselves”.

Here, para admitirmos slightly underlines our own role: we are the ones who have to do the admitting.

Is the -mos ending in admitirmos really necessary here?

No, it’s not strictly necessary. Both versions work:

• para admitir (infinitive, no person marking)
• para admitirmos (personal infinitive, 1st person plural)

Guideline:

• If the subject is the same as the main verb and is obvious (as here), you may use the personal infinitive, but you don’t have to.
• In European Portuguese, using it is very natural, especially when you want to stress the subject.

So you can safely say either form; you won’t sound wrong.

Could I say para que admitamos instead of para admitirmos?

Yes, grammatically you could:

• …precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos errados.
• …precisamos de coragem para que admitamos quando estamos errados.

Para que + subjunctive (admitamos) is more formal and literary. In everyday European Portuguese, para + (personal) infinitive is much more common for expressing purpose.

So:

• Everyday / neutral: para admitir / para admitirmos
• More formal / written: para que admitamos

Why is it quando estamos errados and not something with the subjunctive, like quando estejamos errados?

In Portuguese, quando + present indicative is used for:

• general truths
• habitual situations
• things that really happen or are expected to happen

That’s the case here: “when(ever) we are wrong” in a general sense.

So we use the present indicative:

• quando estamos errados = when we are wrong (in general / whenever it happens)

Quando + subjunctive is used in more hypothetical or future‑oriented contexts, and *quando estejamos errados is not idiomatic in this meaning.

Why is errados masculine plural? Could it be erradas?

Errados is an adjective agreeing with nós:

• nós = “we”
• adjective for “we” must be plural
• gender depends on the group:
  • mixed or all‑male group → masculine plural: errados
  • all‑female group → feminine plural: erradas

So:

• Mixed group: Nós precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos errados.
• Group of only women: Nós precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos erradas.

What’s the difference between estamos errados and estamos enganados?

Both can translate as “we are wrong”, but there’s a nuance:

• estar errado

  • focuses on being incorrect (facts, answers, opinions, decisions)
  • “Our answer is wrong; our judgment is wrong.”

• estar enganado

  • focuses on being mistaken / misled / under a wrong impression
  • often implies you have been deceived or you misunderstood something

In this sentence, estamos errados is perfect, because it’s about admitting we’re in the wrong (morally / factually), not so much about being misled.

Could the sentence be Nós precisamos de coragem para admitir que estamos errados? Is that different?

Yes, that version is correct and very natural:

• …para admitir quando estamos errados.
  = to admit when we are wrong (each time that happens)
• …para admitir que estamos errados.
  = to admit that we are wrong

The original focuses on situations in which we are wrong (“when it happens”).
The que version focuses more on acknowledging the fact that we’re wrong.

Both are close in meaning; the choice is mostly stylistic.

Why is the preposition para used before admitirmos?

Para + infinitive often expresses:

• purpose / goal: “in order to / to”
• intended result

Here:

• precisamos de coragem para admitir…
  = we need courage in order to admit…

Other prepositions would change the meaning:

• de admitir → more like “of admitting” (not a purpose)
• em admitir → unusual and not idiomatic here

So para + (personal) infinitive is the natural way to express purpose.

Is the word order fixed, or could I move parts around?

The natural word order is:

• [Nós] precisamos de coragem para admitirmos quando estamos errados.
  Subject – verb – object – purpose clause – time clause

You have some flexibility, but you cannot just move things anywhere. For example:

• Precisamos de coragem nós… → possible but sounds emphatic / unusual.
• Precisamos de coragem para, quando estamos errados, admitirmos. → possible in writing, more formal or rhetorical.

But something like:

• *Nós precisamos de coragem para quando estamos errados admitirmos

is awkward and not natural. For learners, it’s best to keep the original order.