Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Liguei à minha avó para lhe contar o meu sonho estranho. - I called my grandmother to tell her about my strange dream.

Liguei is the 1st person singular of the past simple (pretérito perfeito), so it can only mean “I called”.
Because that information is clearly marked in the verb form, eu liguei is usually shortened to just Liguei in normal speech and writing.

You can say Eu liguei à minha avó…, but it sounds more emphatic, like you’re stressing I (not someone else) called her.

What tense is Liguei, and why is it used here?

Liguei is the pretérito perfeito simples (simple past) of ligar.

It describes a single, completed action in the past: I called (once / at a specific time).
English often uses the simple past the same way: “I called my grandmother…”

Other tenses would change the meaning:

Ligava à minha avó… – I used to call / I would call my grandmother… (habitual or background past)
Tenho ligado à minha avó… – I have been calling my grandmother… (repeated / ongoing up to now)

Why is it à minha avó and not just a minha avó or para a minha avó?

There are two things going on:

The preposition:
With the meaning to phone someone, in European Portuguese you usually say ligar a alguém (call to someone).
- So you need the preposition a before minha avó.
The contraction:
a (preposition) + a (definite article “the” feminine) → à
- a + a minha avó = à minha avó

About para:

In Portugal, with ligar
- person, a is more natural: ligar a alguém.
Ligar para is more common with things like phone numbers:
- Ligar para o 112 – Call 112.
In Brazil, ligar para alguém is the usual form.

So in European Portuguese, Liguei à minha avó is the standard choice.

What exactly is à here? Is it like the French accent mark à or the Portuguese crase?

In Portuguese, à is a contraction:

a (preposition “to”) + a (definite article “the”, feminine singular) → à

The little accent is called crase and marks this contraction in writing.

So in à minha avó, you literally have:

a (to) + a avó (the grandmother) → à avó → à minha avó

It’s not a different word; it’s just two a’s merging into one with an accent to show it.

What does lhe mean in para lhe contar o meu sonho estranho?

Lhe is a clitic pronoun meaning “to him / to her / to you (formal)” in European Portuguese. It’s an indirect object pronoun.

In this sentence:

lhe refers back to minha avó → to her
contar-lhe = to tell her

So para lhe contar o meu sonho estranho = “in order to tell her my strange dream.”

It does not mean him/her as a direct object (that would be o / a), but to him/her.

Why is it para lhe contar and not para contar-lhe or para contar a ela?

All three are grammatically possible, but they differ in style and regional preference.

para lhe contar
- Very natural in European Portuguese today.
- Clitic (lhe) before the infinitive (contar) is especially common after para when expressing purpose.
para contar-lhe
- Also correct, especially in more formal or careful EP, but sounds a bit more old‑fashioned in everyday speech.
- This pattern (clitic after the infinitive, attached with a hyphen) is very common with other infinitives and with personal infinitives.
para contar a ela
- Uses a full prepositional phrase instead of a clitic.
- Grammatically fine, but often used when you want to emphasise her, or avoid ambiguity:
  - …para contar a ela, não ao avô. – …to tell her, not granddad.

In your sentence, para lhe contar is the most typical and neutral EP choice.

Could I say Liguei-lhe para contar o meu sonho estranho instead?

Yes, that’s also correct and natural in European Portuguese:

Liguei-lhe = I called her (to her)

So you’d have:

Liguei-lhe para contar o meu sonho estranho.

Comparing the two versions:

Liguei à minha avó para lhe contar…
- Mentions “my grandmother” explicitly.
- Then uses lhe to refer back to her.
Liguei-lhe para contar…
- Uses only the pronoun; we must know from the context who “her” is.
- Sounds slightly more compact and a bit more formal / written.

Both are very idiomatic in EP.

What’s the difference between lhe and o / a / te in sentences like this?

These pronouns have different functions:

lhe = to him / to her / to you (formal) → indirect object
- Contei-lhe o meu sonho. – I told him/her my dream.
o / a = him / her / it as direct object
- Vi-o. – I saw him/it.
- Conheci-a. – I met her.
te = you (informal, singular) as direct or indirect object
- Vi-te. – I saw you.
- Contei-te o meu sonho. – I told you my dream.

In your sentence, you’re saying tell my dream to her, so you need the indirect object → lhe.

Why is it o meu sonho estranho and not just meu sonho estranho?

In European Portuguese, it is very common (and usually more natural) to use a definite article with possessives:

o meu, a minha, os meus, as minhas
o teu, a tua, etc.

So:

o meu sonho – literally the my dream → my dream
o meu sonho estranho – my strange dream

Leaving out the article (meu sonho estranho) is possible, but in European Portuguese it sounds:

more poetic / literary, or
sometimes more emphatic or stylised.

In everyday EP, o meu sonho estranho is the default.

Why does estranho come after sonho? Can I say estranho sonho?

The usual order in Portuguese is:

noun + adjective → sonho estranho = strange dream

You can say estranho sonho, but:

It sounds more literary / poetic / expressive, and
Often carries a slightly different nuance, drawing attention to the adjective.

Neutral, everyday order:

o meu sonho estranho – my strange dream (just stating a fact).

Marked / stylistic order:

o meu estranho sonho – my strange dream (with extra emphasis or more “poetic” colouring).

Why is the preposition para used here? Could I use por instead?

Here, para introduces a purpose / intention:

para lhe contar o meu sonho estranho – in order to tell her my strange dream

In Portuguese:

para + infinitive often expresses purpose:
- Estudo para passar no exame. – I study to pass the exam.

Por has different main uses (cause, means, duration, exchange, etc.) and would be wrong in this sentence if you want to say in order to.

So:

Liguei à minha avó para lhe contar… ✅
Liguei à minha avó por lhe contar… ❌ (ungrammatical in standard Portuguese here)

Is this sentence the same in Brazilian Portuguese, or would they say it differently?

The sentence is fully understandable in Brazil, but typical Brazilian Portuguese would more likely be:

Liguei para a minha avó para contar o meu sonho estranho.

Key differences:

ligar para alguém is the most common pattern in Brazil.
Brazilians often avoid “lhe” in speech and prefer full phrases:
- …para contar o meu sonho estranho para ela.

So, in Brazil:

Liguei para a minha avó para contar para ela o meu sonho estranho.
would sound very natural, whereas in Portugal the original version with à and lhe sounds more idiomatic.