Para mim, uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala.

For me, a humble person listens more than they speak.

Breakdown of Para mim, uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala.

• para: for
• mais: more
• falar: to speak
• ouvir: to listen
• uma: a
• a pessoa: the person
• do que: than
• mim: me
• humilde: humble

Questions & Answers about Para mim, uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala.

Why is it para mim and not para eu at the start?

In this sentence para mim means “in my opinion”, not literally “for me to…”.

• After a preposition like para, Portuguese normally uses stressed pronouns: mim, ti, ele, ela, nós, vós, eles, elas.
  So: para mim, para ti, para ele, etc.
• Eu is a subject pronoun, not used after a preposition on its own in this meaning.

Compare:

• Para mim, uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala.
  → In my opinion, a humble person listens more than speaks.

• Para eu perceber isto, tens de explicar melhor.
  → For me to understand this, you have to explain it better.
  (Here eu is the subject of perceber, so para eu is possible.)

In your sentence there is no verb depending on eu, so para mim (meaning from my point of view) is the only natural option.

What exactly does para mim mean here? Is it literally “for me”?

Literally, para mim is “for me”, but in this position at the start of the sentence it is an idiomatic way to say:

• “in my opinion”
• “as far as I’m concerned”
• “to me” (in the sense of I think that…).

So you can think of the sentence as:

Para mim, = In my opinion,
uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala. = a humble person listens more than speaks.

Why is there a comma after para mim?

The comma marks a detached introductory phrase that gives the speaker’s point of view.

• Para mim is not the subject; it’s an adverbial phrase of viewpoint.

• In both Portuguese and English, these are usually separated by a comma:

  • Para mim, isto é importante. → In my opinion, this is important.
  • Na minha experiência, é difícil. → In my experience, it’s difficult.

So the comma just shows that para mim is an introductory comment, not part of the core subject–verb structure.

Why is it uma pessoa humilde and not uma humilde pessoa?

In Portuguese, most adjectives normally come after the noun, especially when they describe a stable quality or a type of person/thing.

• uma pessoa humilde = a humble person
• um carro vermelho = a red car
• uma casa grande = a big house

Putting the adjective before the noun (e.g. uma humilde pessoa) is possible but:

• sounds much more literary, poetic, or emphatic;
• is not the neutral, everyday way to say it.

So:

• Natural / neutral:
  Uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala.
• Marked / literary, maybe ironic or very emotional:
  Uma humilde pessoa ouve mais do que fala.

Does humilde mean “poor” here, or just “modest / not arrogant”?

In Portuguese, humilde can have two main senses:

1. Moral quality:

   • modest, not arrogant, not proud, down‑to‑earth.
   • This is the meaning in your sentence.

2. Social / economic status (context‑dependent):

   • of low social rank or few financial resources.
   • Example: Veio de uma família humilde. → He came from a humble (poor) family.

In uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala, the context is about character, so it clearly means someone who is modest and unassuming, not necessarily poor.

How is ouve formed, and what verb is it from?

Ouve is from the verb ouvir (to hear / to listen).

• Infinitive: ouvir
• Present tense, 3rd person singular: ele/ela ouve

Full present tense of ouvir:

• eu ouço (I hear / I listen)
• tu ouves
• ele / ela / você ouve
• nós ouvimos
• vós ouvis (rare in modern speech)
• eles / elas / vocês ouvem

In the sentence, the subject is uma pessoa humilde (third person singular), so the verb must be ouve.

Why is it fala and not falas or falam?

Because the subject is uma pessoa humilde, which is third person singular.

• uma pessoa = one person → singular
• So the verb must also be singular: fala.

Compare:

• Uma pessoa humilde fala pouco. → A humble person speaks little.
• Pessoas humildes falam pouco. → Humble people speak little.
• Tu falas pouco. → You (singular, informal) speak little.

So the person/number agreement is:

• uma pessoa → fala
• pessoas → falam
• tu → falas

What is the difference between ouvir and escutar? Why use ouve and not escuta?

Both ouvir and escutar involve hearing, but there is a nuance:

• ouvir = to hear / to listen (general, very common)
  
  • can mean just perceiving sound, or listening, depending on context.
• escutar = to listen (more intentionally, often “to listen carefully”).

In everyday European Portuguese:

• ouvir is much more frequent in neutral statements like this.
• escutar can sound slightly more formal or focused on attentive listening.

So:

• Uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala.
  = very natural, general statement.

You could say:

• Uma pessoa humilde escuta mais do que fala.

This would slightly highlight the attentive, careful aspect of listening, but grammatically it’s fine.

Why is it mais do que fala and not just mais que fala?

Both mais do que and mais que are used in comparisons in Portuguese:

• mais do que = more than
• mais que = more than

In European Portuguese:

• mais do que is often considered more formal / careful / explicit;
• mais que is also correct and common in speech.

So you can say:

• ouve mais do que fala
• ouve mais que fala

Both mean “listens more than (he/she) talks”.
Your version with do que is perfectly standard and maybe slightly more neutral in writing.

Could I say fala menos do que ouve instead? Does that change the meaning?

Yes, you can say:

• Para mim, uma pessoa humilde fala menos do que ouve.

This is grammatically correct and very natural.
The meaning is almost the same, just expressed from the other side:

• ouve mais do que fala = listens more than talks
• fala menos do que ouve = talks less than listens

In practice, both describe the same kind of behaviour.
The original sentence slightly emphasises listening, while the alternative slightly emphasises speaking less, but the difference is minimal.

Why is the subject pronoun (like ela) omitted before ouve and fala?

Portuguese is a “null‑subject” (pro‑drop) language: you usually omit subject pronouns when the verb ending already tells you who is doing the action.

• The subject here is clearly uma pessoa humilde.

• So you don’t need to repeat ela:

  • Uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala. ✔
  • Uma pessoa humilde ela ouve mais do que fala. ✘ (incorrect / redundant)

If you used a pronoun alone as subject, it would be:

• Ela ouve mais do que fala. → She listens more than she speaks.

But when you already have uma pessoa humilde as the subject, adding ela would be wrong or at least very strange.

Could I change the order and say Uma pessoa humilde, para mim, ouve mais do que fala?

Yes, that word order is also possible:

• Uma pessoa humilde, para mim, ouve mais do que fala.

Both sentences are correct:

1. Para mim, uma pessoa humilde ouve mais do que fala.
2. Uma pessoa humilde, para mim, ouve mais do que fala.

The difference is only one of rhythm and slight emphasis:

• Version 1 (Para mim at the start) first frames the whole sentence as a personal opinion, then states it.
• Version 2 starts with the general category (a humble person), then adds from my point of view in the middle.

In normal conversation, version 1 is a bit more common, but both are perfectly acceptable.