Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Ultimamente ando a ter um sonho estranho quase todos os dias. - Lately I’ve been having a strange dream almost every day.

Ando a ter is the structure andar + a + infinitive. Literally, it’s like saying “I go around having” / “I’ve been having”, but in real usage it means:

an action that has been happening repeatedly or over a period of time
with a nuance that it’s somehow ongoing, and often a bit bothersome, strange, or notable

So:

Ultimamente ando a ter um sonho estranho…
≈ “Lately I’ve been having a strange dream…”

If you said only:

Ultimamente tenho um sonho estranho quase todos os dias.

it’s grammatical, but it sounds more like a neutral statement of habit (almost like a schedule), and less like something that’s actively “going on” in your life at the moment. Andar a + infinitive makes it sound more “in progress” and noticeable.

What is the difference between ando a ter and estou a ter?

Both are progressive‑type forms in European Portuguese, but they’re not used the same way:

estar a + infinitive
→ basic “-ing” form, action in progress now or around now
- Estou a ter um sonho estranho.
  “I’m having a strange dream (right now).”
  You’d say this if someone wakes you up in the middle of the dream, for example.
andar a + infinitive
→ repeated or ongoing situation over a stretch of time, often noticeable or a bit problematic
- Ultimamente ando a ter um sonho estranho.
  “Lately I’ve been having a strange dream.” (it keeps happening recently)

So:

estou a ter focuses on the action happening at this moment.
ando a ter focuses on a pattern that’s been going on over some time.

Could I say Ultimamente tenho tido um sonho estranho quase todos os dias instead? What’s the difference?

You can say Ultimamente tenho tido um sonho estranho quase todos os dias, and it is correct. It uses the present perfect (ter in the present + past participle tido).

Nuance:

Ultimamente tenho tido um sonho estranho…
→ fairly neutral way to say “I have had a strange dream lately/recently (repeatedly).”
It presents the situation as a series of completed events within the recent period.
Ultimamente ando a ter um sonho estranho…
→ feels more “alive” and ongoing, a bit like “I keep having this strange dream lately” or “I’ve been having this weird dream over and over”.
It sounds slightly more informal and more like you’re bothered or puzzled by it.

Both are acceptable; ando a ter is very natural in spoken European Portuguese for this kind of repeated, current annoyance/oddity.

Why is um sonho estranho singular and not plural, like sonhos estranhos?

Portuguese, like English, can use a singular indefinite noun for a recurring experience:

Tenho um sonho estranho quase todos os dias.
Literally: “I have a strange dream almost every day.”
Meaning: On most days, there is one strange dream (not necessarily the same dream).

This mirrors English:

“I have a weird dream almost every night.” (singular)
even though it happens many times.

If you say:

Tenho sonhos estranhos quase todos os dias.
“I have strange dreams almost every day.”

you’re emphasizing that there are multiple strange dreams each time, or you’re speaking more generally about the dreams being strange, without focusing on “one per night”.

The original sentence chooses um sonho estranho (singular) probably because the idea is “each day, there’s this one weird dream”.

What’s the difference between ter um sonho and sonhar? Could I say Ultimamente ando a sonhar com uma coisa estranha?

Yes, you can say:

Ultimamente ando a sonhar com uma coisa estranha.
“Lately I’ve been dreaming about something strange.”

Difference:

ter um sonho = “to have a dream” (focus on the dream as an event)
- Ando a ter um sonho estranho.
  → there is (repeatedly) a strange dream happening.
sonhar (com) = “to dream (about)” (focus on the mental activity / content)
- Ando a sonhar com um lugar estranho.
  “I’ve been dreaming about a strange place.”

They overlap a lot, and both are natural. Often:

ter um sonho mentions the fact of the dream.
sonhar com X mentions what the dream is about.

In the original sentence, ter um sonho estranho works well because the person is talking about this recurring “strange dream event” in their life.

Why is estranho after sonho (um sonho estranho) and not before, like um estranho sonho? Does the position of the adjective matter?

In Portuguese, adjective position (before or after the noun) can change the nuance of the meaning.

Default, neutral position is usually after the noun:

um sonho estranho
→ “a strange dream” (normal, objective description: the dream is strange)

If you move estranho before the noun:

um estranho sonho

it becomes more stylistic or literary. It can sound more subjective or emotive, sometimes with a sense of “odd, mysterious, peculiar” in a slightly poetic way.

Everyday, natural speech would use:

um sonho estranho

Most learners should stick with noun + adjective (post‑position) unless they specifically want a more literary or marked tone.

Is the a in ando a ter obligatory? Could I say ando ter um sonho estranho?

The a is obligatory in European Portuguese in this construction.

Correct:

ando a ter
andamos a fazer
anda a chover (it’s been raining)

Incorrect:

✗ ando ter um sonho estranho
✗ andamos fazer isto

The pattern is:

andar + a + infinitive → ongoing/repeated action

Dropping a would sound ungrammatical in European Portuguese.

Could I just use the simple present: Ultimamente tenho um sonho estranho quase todos os dias? Would that sound wrong?

It’s not wrong; it’s grammatically correct. But the nuance changes:

Ultimamente tenho um sonho estranho quase todos os dias.
→ Sounds more like a straightforward description of a current habit. Perfectly understandable, but a bit flatter, more “neutral”.
Ultimamente ando a ter um sonho estranho quase todos os dias.
→ Highlights that this is a recent, ongoing pattern that you’re noticing and maybe finding odd or annoying. This is what people would more naturally say in conversation.

So yes, you can use the simple present, but ando a ter is more idiomatic here for spoken European Portuguese.

What does Ultimamente do in the sentence, and does it have to be at the beginning?

Ultimamente means “lately / recently / in recent times”. It’s a time adverb and sets the time frame of the situation.

Word order options:

Ultimamente ando a ter um sonho estranho quase todos os dias.
(most natural; adverb at the start, like English “Lately, I’ve been…”)
Ando, ultimamente, a ter um sonho estranho quase todos os dias.
(possible, with commas; a bit more formal or emphatic)
Ando a ter, ultimamente, um sonho estranho quase todos os dias.
(also possible, but can feel slightly cluttered)

Putting Ultimamente first is the clearest and most common. It immediately tells the listener “what I’m about to describe is true recently”.

What does quase todos os dias literally mean, and can I say quase cada dia instead?

quase todos os dias literally = “almost all the days” → “almost every day”.

quase = almost
todos = all/every (here: “every”)
os dias = the days

This is the natural way to say “almost every day” in Portuguese.

You can say quase todos os dias, but:

quase cada dia is understandable but sounds unusual or foreign‑sounding.
cada dia is “each day” and is used, but combining quase with cada is not the usual pattern.

Stick with:

quase todos os dias = almost every day
todos os dias = every day

Those are the most idiomatic expressions.