Breakdown of De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço.
Questions & Answers about De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço.
In Portuguese, de manhã is the standard fixed expression for in the morning (as a time of day in general).
- de manhã = in the morning (generally, as a routine time)
- De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina… → I (always) have a vitamin in the mornings…
- na manhã is only used when you specify which morning:
- na manhã de segunda-feira = on Monday morning
- à manhã is not used in modern Portuguese with this meaning.
So when you’re talking about a habitual action that happens in the mornings, you say de manhã, not na manhã.
Portuguese uses the simple present (here, tomo) very often for habits and routines, much more than English does.
- De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina…
Literally: In the morning I take always a vitamin…
Natural English: In the morning I always have a vitamin…
If you said estou a tomar (I am taking), it would sound like you are in the middle of taking it right now, not describing a regular habit.
So, for routine actions (every day, usually, always, often), use the simple present:
tomo, como, bebo, faço, etc.
Both verbs can be used, but they have slightly different focuses:
tomar is often used for:
- medicines: tomar um comprimido (take a pill)
- certain regular consumptions: tomar café, tomar o pequeno-almoço
- more general "to have" in the sense of consuming something
beber is specifically to drink (focusing on the physical act of drinking).
In this sentence:
- tomo uma vitamina suggests I take/have a vitamin (as part of my routine).
- bebo uma vitamina would be understood, but it focuses more literally on drinking it.
In European Portuguese, tomar is very natural in the context of regular nutrient/health things (vitamins, supplements), especially if it’s something like a shake or a supplement you “take” daily.
Context matters a lot:
- In Brazilian Portuguese, uma vitamina usually means a fruit smoothie/milkshake type drink.
- In European Portuguese, uma vitamina can mean:
- A vitamin supplement (tablet, capsule, etc.)
- A vitamin drink or shake (depending on the context).
With the sentence De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço, many European Portuguese speakers would first imagine:
- a vitamin pill/capsule, or
- maybe a vitamin supplement drink you routinely take with breakfast.
If the speaker wanted to be very clear about a pill, they might also say um comprimido de vitaminas (a vitamin pill) or um suplemento de vitaminas (a vitamin supplement).
In Portuguese, vitamina is a feminine noun, so it takes the feminine article uma:
- uma vitamina (a vitamin)
- a vitamina (the vitamin)
- duas vitaminas (two vitamins)
You choose um or uma based on the noun’s grammatical gender, not on its meaning in English.
All of these are grammatically possible, but they sound different in terms of emphasis:
- De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina…
Most neutral and common. sempre goes after the verb in a normal statement. - De manhã sempre tomo uma vitamina…
Also correct; can slightly emphasize the idea of always (almost like “I always have a vitamin”). - Sempre tomo uma vitamina de manhã…
Starts with sempre, so it strongly emphasizes the always: “I always take a vitamin in the morning.”
For a simple, neutral sentence describing a habit, tomo sempre is the most typical European Portuguese word order.
Not in this general, habitual sense.
- de manhã = in the mornings / in the morning (as a daily time period)
- De manhã tomo sempre… ✔️
- na manhã normally needs something extra:
- na manhã de domingo = on Sunday morning
- na manhã seguinte = on the following morning
Using na manhã alone to mean just “in the morning” (as a general routine time) sounds unnatural.
In Portuguese, meals usually take the definite article o / a / os / as when you are talking about them in a specific, daily sense:
- o pequeno-almoço = (the) breakfast
- o almoço = (the) lunch
- o jantar = (the) dinner
Examples:
- Tomo café com o pequeno-almoço.
- Hoje o almoço foi delicioso.
You normally say:
- com o pequeno-almoço (with breakfast) not:
- com pequeno-almoço (this sounds incomplete/odd).
So com o pequeno-almoço is the natural way to say with (my/the) breakfast.
Yes, but the nuance is slightly different:
- com o pequeno-almoço = with breakfast, as something you take together with your breakfast.
- Focus on accompanying the meal.
- ao pequeno-almoço = at/for breakfast (as the time/occasion when you have it).
- Focus on the meal time.
Both are acceptable:
- De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço.
I always have a vitamin together with breakfast. - De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina ao pequeno-almoço.
I always have a vitamin at breakfast (that’s when I take it).
In everyday speech, com o pequeno-almoço feels very natural when it’s literally taken alongside the meal.
- In European Portuguese, the usual word for breakfast is o pequeno-almoço (with a hyphen).
- In Brazilian Portuguese, people usually say o café da manhã.
So:
- Portugal: De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço.
- Brazil (more natural version): De manhã sempre tomo uma vitamina com o café da manhã.
The hyphen in pequeno-almoço comes from spelling rules for compound words; you don’t need to change it or separate it when you use it. It behaves like a single noun:
- o pequeno-almoço, do pequeno-almoço, ao pequeno-almoço, etc.
Yes. Common options:
- De manhã tomo sempre uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço.
Very natural; time expression at the start. - Tomo sempre uma vitamina de manhã com o pequeno-almoço.
Also correct; de manhã is in the middle. - Tomo sempre de manhã uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço.
Correct but sounds a bit heavier; still understandable. - Tomo sempre uma vitamina com o pequeno-almoço de manhã.
Grammatically possible, but de manhã at the very end feels slightly redundant/unneeded here, because pequeno-almoço already suggests a morning time.
Placing de manhã at the beginning is the cleanest and most natural in this sentence.