Quero transformar esse vício num hábito saudável, como ler um livro curto.

I want to turn that addiction into a healthy habit, like reading a short book.

Breakdown of Quero transformar esse vício num hábito saudável, como ler um livro curto.

• um: a
• querer: to want
• ler: to read
• o livro: the book
• saudável: healthy
• o hábito: the habit
• esse: that
• curto: short
• o vício: the addiction
• transformar: to turn
• em: into
• como: like

Questions & Answers about Quero transformar esse vício num hábito saudável, como ler um livro curto.

Why does the sentence start with Quero and not Eu quero? Do you usually drop the pronoun eu in Portuguese?

Yes, Portuguese normally drops subject pronouns when they’re clear from the verb ending.

• Quero can only be “I want” because of the -o ending (1st person singular), so eu is not necessary.
• Eu quero is also correct, but it adds emphasis or contrast, like:
  • Eu quero transformar esse vício… (implying “I want to…, even if others don’t”)
• In a neutral sentence like this, European Portuguese speakers would very naturally just say Quero.

In European Portuguese, would it be more natural to say este vício instead of esse vício?

In European Portuguese, este / esse / aquele usually keep a three-way distance:

• este – “this” (close to the speaker)
• esse – “that” (close to the listener, or something just mentioned by the listener)
• aquele – “that over there / that one (far from both)”

So if I’m talking about my own addiction, European Portuguese would more typically use:

• Quero transformar este vício…

Esse vício could be used if:

• the listener had just mentioned the addiction, or
• it’s something already present in the conversation as “that vice you mentioned”.

In Brazilian Portuguese, esse is often used more broadly, even where European Portuguese would prefer este, which is probably why you see esse vício here. For Portugal, este vício is often the more “textbook European” choice in this context, though esse vício is still understandable.

What exactly is the contraction num? How is it formed, and is it used in European Portuguese?

Num is a contraction of:

• em + um → num

So in the sentence:

• …transformar esse vício num hábito saudável…
• literally: “transform this addiction in a healthy habit” → “into a healthy habit”

Yes, this contraction is fully used in European Portuguese.

Related forms:

• em + uma → numa
• em + o → no
• em + a → na

Examples:

• Pus o livro num saco. – I put the book in a bag.
• Mora numa casa pequena. – He/She lives in a small house.

Why do we use transformar … num and not transformar … para um or something else?

With transformar (“to transform / turn into”), the standard preposition is em:

• transformar X em Y – to transform X into Y

So:

• transformar esse vício em um hábito saudável
  → contracted to
• transformar esse vício num hábito saudável

Using para here (transformar … para um hábito) would sound incorrect or at least very odd in Portuguese. Em/num is the natural choice with transformar when you mean “into” in this sense.

Why is hábito saudável in this order and not saudável hábito?

In Portuguese, adjectives usually come after the noun:

• hábito saudável – healthy habit
• livro interessante – interesting book
• vício antigo – old vice/addiction

Putting the adjective before the noun (saudável hábito) is possible but:

• it sounds literary, poetic, or very marked, or
• it can slightly change or emphasize meaning in some fixed expressions.

In normal, everyday European Portuguese, hábito saudável is the natural and correct order.

What is the nuance of the word vício here? Is it always a serious “addiction”?

Vício can mean:

1. A serious addiction (to drugs, alcohol, gambling, etc.)
2. A strong bad habit in a looser sense (e.g. spending too much time on social media, biting your nails)

Context decides how strong it sounds. In this sentence:

• Quero transformar esse vício num hábito saudável…

it can be understood as either:

• a real addiction you want to change, or
• just a negative habit you feel is too strong and want to replace.

You could also say mau hábito (“bad habit”) if you want a slightly softer, more everyday tone than vício.

Why is there a comma before como? Would the meaning change without it?

The comma separates the main idea from an example / clarification:

• …num hábito saudável, como ler um livro curto.
• “…into a healthy habit, such as reading a short book.”

With the comma, como ler um livro curto is clearly read as “for example, reading a short book”.

Without the comma:

• …num hábito saudável como ler um livro curto.

it can still be read as “such as”, but it’s less clearly set off as an example and could be read more as “a healthy habit like reading a short book” in one continuous phrase. In writing, the comma is preferred to make the “for example” sense obvious.

What does como mean in como ler um livro curto? Is it “how” or “like/as”?

Here como means “like / such as / for example”, not “how”.

• …num hábito saudável, como ler um livro curto.
• “…into a healthy habit, such as reading a short book.”

Other common meanings of como:

• como? – how?
• trabalha como professor – he works as a teacher
• branco como a neve – white like snow
• como não tinha dinheiro, ficou em casa – since he had no money, he stayed home

In your sentence, it’s the “like / such as” meaning.

Why is ler in the infinitive here? In English we’d say “reading a short book”. How do I know when to use the infinitive in this way?

Portuguese often uses the infinitive where English uses a -ing form as a noun:

• Ler é importante. – Reading is important.
• Fumar faz mal. – Smoking is bad for you.

In your sentence:

• …como ler um livro curto.
• “…such as reading a short book.”

Ler is the infinitive, functioning like a noun (“the act of reading”). This is very standard.

You would not normally use a gerund (lendo) here. In European Portuguese, lendo is mainly used:

• with estar for ongoing actions: estou a ler / (BP: estou lendo) – I am reading
• in some literary / more formal structures.

So in this kind of example phrase, the bare infinitive ler is the natural choice.

Why is it ler um livro curto and not ler um livro pequeno? What’s the difference between curto and pequeno?

Both relate to “small / short”, but they focus on different aspects:

• curto – short in length or duration

  • um livro curto – a short book (few pages / quick to read)
  • um filme curto – a short film
  • uma reunião curta – a short meeting

• pequeno – small in size or more generally “little”

  • um livro pequeno – a small book (physically small or not very big in general)
  • uma casa pequena – a small house
  • um pequeno problema – a small problem

In this sentence, we want the idea of a book that doesn’t take long or have many pages, so livro curto is the best choice.

Could the sentence use a different tense like Queria transformar esse vício… or Gostava de transformar esse vício… in European Portuguese? How would that change the meaning?

Yes, both are possible and slightly softer in tone:

• Quero transformar esse vício…
  – direct: “I want to transform this addiction…”
• Queria transformar esse vício…
  – literally “I wanted to…”, but often used like “I’d like to…”, softer and more tentative.
• Gostava de transformar esse vício…
  – “I would like to transform this addiction…”, also softer/politer.

In European Portuguese:

• Quero can sound quite strong and direct, especially as a request.
• When talking about your own long-term desires (as in your sentence), Quero is fine and natural.
• Queria and Gostava de are very common when you want to sound less blunt or more polite, especially when asking others for something. Here, all three are grammatically correct; the choice is about tone.