Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Isso significa que o exame é fácil para o Pedro. - That means that the exam is easy for Pedro.

isto – this, something very close to the speaker, or something that is about to be mentioned.
isso – that, usually referring to something close to the listener, or (very often) to something that has just been mentioned in the conversation or text.
aquilo – that (over there), something far from both speaker and listener, or emotionally / conceptually distant.

In a sentence like Isso significa que…, isso almost always refers back to something that was said or implied just before. It is the default pronoun for “that (thing we just talked about)”.

Using isto here would sound more like you are pointing to something you are just introducing now, and aquilo would sound like you’re creating more distance, sometimes with a nuance of disapproval or remoteness.

What is the subject of significa? Why don’t we need an extra pronoun?

In Isso significa que o exame é fácil para o Pedro, the subject of significa is isso.

Portuguese, like other Romance languages, usually does not use an extra subject pronoun when the subject is already expressed:

Isso significa… = That means…
You do not say Isso ele significa… (that would be ungrammatical).

The verb form significa (3rd person singular) already agrees with isso, so nothing else is needed.

Can I say Isso quer dizer que o exame é fácil para o Pedro instead of Isso significa…? Is there any difference?

Yes, you can. Both are correct and common:

Isso significa que…
Isso quer dizer que…

They are very close in meaning: both correspond to English That means that…

Nuances (very slight):

significar sounds a bit more formal or “dictionary-like”.
querer dizer is a bit more conversational and can also be used to check or clarify meaning, like:
- Queres dizer que o exame é fácil para o Pedro? = Do you mean that the exam is easy for Pedro?

In everyday speech in Portugal, you will hear both forms a lot.

In English I can say “This means the exam is easy for Pedro” without that. Why do we need que in Isso significa que o exame…?

In Portuguese, the conjunction que is almost always required to introduce a full clause after verbs like significar or querer dizer:

Isso significa que o exame é fácil para o Pedro. ✅
Isso significa o exame é fácil para o Pedro. ❌ (incorrect)

English can often drop that (“This means the exam is easy…”), but Portuguese normally cannot omit que in this structure.

So whenever you have significar (que) + full sentence, keep que.

Why is it o exame and not just exame?

Portuguese uses definite articles (o, a, os, as) more frequently than English:

o exame = the exam
exame with no article is much less common and usually appears in certain fixed expressions or headlines.

Here we are talking about a specific exam (perhaps the one already known in the context), so the definite article o is natural and expected:

Isso significa que o exame é fácil… = That means the exam is easy…

Leaving out o would sound strange in normal speech:

Isso significa que exame é fácil… ❌ (ungrammatical here)

Why is it é fácil and not está fácil?

Both ser (é) and estar (está) can combine with adjectives, but they usually express different ideas:

ser fácil – describes an inherent or typical quality.
estar fácil – describes a temporary or current state.

In o exame é fácil, the idea is that, in general, by its nature or level, the exam is easy (at least for Pedro). This is why ser is used.

You could say O exame está fácil in contexts like after seeing the questions, to mean “the exam (this time / right now) turned out to be easy”, but it is less common and depends heavily on context. The neutral, default comment about the difficulty of an exam is with ser.

Why is the preposition para used in para o Pedro? Could I use a or por instead?

Here para expresses the idea of “for (someone), from their point of view”:

O exame é fácil para o Pedro. = The exam is easy for Pedro (in Pedro’s opinion / experience).

Other options:

a is typically used with verbs that mean giving / saying / showing to someone:
- Dar o exame ao Pedro. = Give the exam to Pedro.
  It does not fit here, because we are not transferring anything; we’re describing how easy it is for him.
por usually means by, through, because of, for (a reason), etc.
- por causa do Pedro = because of Pedro
- feito pelo Pedro = done by Pedro
  por does not express this “for someone (in their view)” sense here, so por o Pedro / pelo Pedro would be wrong in this sentence.

So when you want “easy / difficult / important / etc. for someone”, use para + person in Portuguese:

fácil para o Pedro, difícil para mim, importante para nós.

Why is it para o Pedro and not just para Pedro? Do names take an article in European Portuguese?

In European Portuguese, it is very common to use a definite article before a person’s first name in everyday speech:

o Pedro, a Ana, o João, a Maria, etc.

So:

para o Pedro is the normal conversational form.
para Pedro (without the article) is also grammatically correct, but sounds more formal, written, or “neutral”.

In European Portuguese, using the article with names is often the default, especially when the person is known in the context. In Brazilian Portuguese, the article with given names is much less common and can sound dialectal or regional.

Can I change the word order, for example Isso significa que para o Pedro o exame é fácil?

Yes, you can change the order for emphasis:

Isso significa que o exame é fácil para o Pedro. (neutral)
Isso significa que, para o Pedro, o exame é fácil. (emphasis on “for Pedro”)

By moving para o Pedro earlier, you highlight that it is specifically for Pedro that the exam is easy (maybe not for others). Both sentences are correct; the difference is mainly in focus and rhythm.

You cannot, however, separate que from its clause in odd ways. For example:

Isso significa para o Pedro que o exame é fácil. – possible, but now it can also mean “That means, for Pedro, that the exam is easy”, slightly changing the nuance.

Does fácil change for masculine/feminine or singular/plural?

Fácil is one of those adjectives in Portuguese that:

has the same form for masculine and feminine in the singular:
- o exame é fácil, a prova é fácil
changes in the plural to fáceis:
- os exames são fáceis, as provas são fáceis

So the pattern is:

Singular: fácil
Plural: fáceis

It never becomes something like fácila or fácilos. Only the number (singular/plural) is marked.

How do you pronounce exame and Pedro in European Portuguese?

Approximate European Portuguese pronunciation (using simple English-like hints):

exame – /i-ZAH-mɨ/
- e at the beginning is like ee in see but shorter.
- x here is pronounced like z.
- a in the stressed syllable -za- sounds a bit like the u in English cut, but with the mouth slightly more open.
- Final -me has a very reduced vowel, a sort of weak, short sound, not like full English “me”.
Pedro – roughly /PEH-droo/ (European, with a slightly rolled or tapped r)
- Pe- similar to pe in pet, but a bit tenser.
- -dro has a tapped r (like the tt in American butter said quickly) and a final o that is often reduced, not a full oh.

In real European Portuguese speech, vowels (especially final ones) are often shorter and more closed than in English.

Could the sentence mean that the exam is easy for Pedro to do, or easy for Pedro in someone else’s opinion? How is this interpreted?

O exame é fácil para o Pedro is interpreted as:

From Pedro’s point of view / considering Pedro’s abilities, the exam is easy.

This can be understood in two close ways:

The exam is easy for Pedro to take / do (he has the knowledge/skills).
The speaker is judging that, given what they know about Pedro, the exam won’t be difficult for him.

In practice, both readings amount to the same idea: relative to Pedro, the exam is easy. Context would decide whether it is Pedro’s own opinion or the speaker’s, but the basic meaning “easy for Pedro” remains the same.

Is there a more colloquial or shorter way to say this in Portuguese?

Yes, in spoken European Portuguese people often use slightly shorter or more informal versions, depending on context. For example:

Então o exame é fácil para o Pedro. – So the exam is easy for Pedro.
Quer dizer que o exame é fácil para o Pedro. – So that means the exam is easy for Pedro.
Por isso, o exame é fácil para o Pedro. – Therefore / So, the exam is easy for Pedro.

Isso significa que o exame é fácil para o Pedro is perfectly natural, but a bit more “explicit”. In fast conversation, speakers may skip isso significa que if the meaning is obvious from context, and just say O exame é fácil para o Pedro after whatever was said before.