Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): O Pedro ainda é jovem.

In English we simply say Pedro, so the article is not translated. In Portugal, though, o Pedro sounds completely natural and neutral in everyday speech.

Is the article O really necessary? Can I just say Pedro ainda é jovem?

Both O Pedro ainda é jovem and Pedro ainda é jovem are grammatically correct.

In Portugal, everyday spoken language almost always uses the article: O Pedro...
Without the article (Pedro ainda é jovem) can sound more formal, more written, or a bit marked depending on region and style.

So you can drop o, but to sound natural in casual European Portuguese, it’s usually better to keep it.

Does the article change with gender and number?

Yes. The definite article agrees with the person’s gender and number:

Masculine singular: o Pedro
Feminine singular: a Maria
Masculine plural: os Pedros (e.g. when talking about several people called Pedro)
Feminine plural: as Marias

With prepositions they often contract:

de + o Pedro → do Pedro
a + o Pedro → ao Pedro
em + o Pedro → no Pedro
por + o Pedro → pelo Pedro

Why is é used here and not está?

É is the 3rd person singular of ser. In this sentence, being young is seen as a characteristic or a life stage, not a temporary state, so Portuguese uses ser:

O Pedro ainda é jovem. = Pedro is still (a) young (person).

If you used estar (está), you’d normally be talking about a temporary condition, or about appearance or mood.

Can I say O Pedro ainda está jovem? What would that mean?

You can say O Pedro ainda está jovem, but it changes the nuance:

O Pedro ainda é jovem.
→ He is still young in terms of age / life stage.
O Pedro ainda está jovem.
→ He still looks/feels young, or he hasn’t lost his youthfulness yet.
(More about appearance, spirit, or a temporary condition.)

So ser jovem = young as a characteristic;
estar jovem = looking/acting/feeling young (often despite age).

What exactly does ainda mean? Does it mean still or yet?

Ainda covers both English still and yet, depending on context:

Affirmative: usually still
- O Pedro ainda é jovem. = Pedro is still young.
- Ele ainda mora aqui. = He still lives here.
Negative: usually yet
- O Pedro ainda não chegou. = Pedro has not arrived yet.

So the word ainda itself doesn’t change; English chooses still or yet depending on whether the sentence is positive or negative.

Can I move ainda to another position, like O Pedro é ainda jovem or O Pedro é jovem ainda?

Yes, but the most natural position is the one you have:

O Pedro ainda é jovem. ✅ very natural and neutral

Other possibilities:

O Pedro é ainda jovem.
Correct, but more formal/literary or with a slight emphasis on ainda.
O Pedro é jovem ainda.
Informal/colloquial; the ainda at the end can give extra emphasis, like “He is young, still.”

Avoid putting ainda before the subject here (Ainda o Pedro é jovem) – that sounds strange or very marked.

Why is jovem at the end and not before the name, like the young Pedro in English?

In this sentence, jovem is a predicate adjective (linked to the subject by é):

O Pedro (subject) + é (verb) + jovem (adjective).
→ “Pedro is young.”

If you said o jovem Pedro, you’d be using jovem as part of the noun phrase, like a title: “the young Pedro”. That would only be used in special contexts (for example, distinguishing him from an older Pedro: o jovem Pedro vs o velho Pedro).

So O Pedro ainda é jovem is the normal, neutral way to say “Pedro is still young.”

Does jovem change for masculine and feminine?

For gender, jovem stays the same:

um rapaz jovem = a young boy
uma rapariga jovem = a young girl

For the plural, it becomes jovens:

rapazes jovens = young boys
raparigas jovens = young girls

So:

Singular: jovem (masc. and fem.)
Plural: jovens (masc. and fem.)

How would this idea look in the plural?

For more than one person, both the subject and the verb change, and jovem becomes jovens:

O Pedro e a Ana ainda são jovens.
→ Pedro and Ana are still young.
Eles ainda são jovens.
→ They are still young.

How do you pronounce O Pedro ainda é jovem in European Portuguese?

Approximate European Portuguese pronunciation (IPA):

O Pedro ainda é jovem → [u ˈpeðɾu ɐˈĩdɐ ɛ ˈʒɔvẽj̃]

A rough English-based guide:

O → like oo in too
Pedro → PEH-droo (with a tapped r like a very quick r in Spanish)
ainda → a-EEN-da (the ai is like “een”, and the n nasalizes the vowel)
é → like eh
jovem → roughly ZHO-vehng, with a nasal ending (no clear final m sound)

Spoken quickly, it flows together: u PEH-droo a-EEN-da EH ZHO-vehng.

Would this sentence be different in Brazilian Portuguese?

Grammatically it’s the same, and O Pedro ainda é jovem is perfectly correct in Brazilian Portuguese.

The main differences:

Many Brazilians (depending on region and style) more often omit the article before names, so Pedro ainda é jovem is also very natural in Brazil.
Pronunciation is different (clearer vowels, different r and e sounds), but the structure and meaning are the same.

For European Portuguese specifically, keeping the article (O Pedro...) is the most typical in everyday speech.