Por mais que eu estude, ainda fico nervoso antes do exame.

No matter how much I study, I still get nervous before the exam.

Breakdown of Por mais que eu estude, ainda fico nervoso antes do exame.

• eu: I
• estudar: to study
• ainda: still
• o exame: the exam
• antes de: before
• ficar: to become
• nervoso: nervous
• por mais que: no matter how much

Questions & Answers about Por mais que eu estude, ainda fico nervoso antes do exame.

What does por mais que mean here, and what is its usual English equivalent?

Por mais que is a fixed expression that introduces a concessive idea — something like:

• no matter how much …
• however much …
• even though / even if … (I study a lot)

So:

• Por mais que eu estude ≈ No matter how much I study / However much I study.

It always suggests that the result in the second part of the sentence goes against expectations created by the first part.

Why is it eu estude and not eu estudo?

Eu estude is in the present subjunctive, not the indicative.

After por mais que, Portuguese normally uses the subjunctive because:

• the action is seen as hypothetical, uncertain, or open-ended,
• it introduces a concession (something that could happen or happens in general, but still doesn’t change the outcome).

So:

• Por mais que eu estude (subjunctive) → No matter how much I study.
• Por mais que eu estudo (indicative) → sounds wrong/unnatural to a native speaker.

With por mais que, you should always think: subjunctive.

Is por mais que always followed by the subjunctive?

Yes, when por mais que has its usual concessive meaning (no matter how much, however much), it is followed by the subjunctive:

• Por mais que eu tente, não consigo.
  No matter how much I try, I can’t manage it.

• Por mais que estudes, vais ficar nervoso.
  However much you study, you’ll get nervous.

The verb form after por mais que will change according to person and tense, but it will stay in the subjunctive mood.

Could you replace por mais que with something else with a similar meaning?

Yes. Very close alternatives in European Portuguese include:

• Por muito que eu estude, …
• Mesmo que eu estude muito, …
• Ainda que eu estude muito, … (more formal/literary)

All keep the subjunctive and the same basic idea of “even if/no matter how much”.

Note: por muito que is especially common in Portugal and is very natural here.

Why is it fico nervoso and not sou nervoso?

• Ficar often means to become / to get (into a state).
• Ser describes a more permanent characteristic.

So:

• fico nervoso → I get/become nervous (a reaction, state that appears before exams).
• sou nervoso → I am a nervous person (by nature), which is a more permanent personality trait.

Here, the idea is a recurring reaction before an exam, not a fixed personality description, so fico is the natural choice.

What nuance does ainda add in ainda fico nervoso?

Ainda here means still (not yet), and it adds the idea that:

• Despite studying, and maybe despite expecting the opposite, this situation continues.

So:

• ainda fico nervoso ≈ I still get nervous / I keep getting nervous.

In other contexts, ainda can mean yet (especially in questions and negatives), but here it clearly means still.

Why is it antes do exame and not antes de o exame?

Grammatically, it is de + o exame.

In Portuguese, de + o contracts to do, so:

• antes de o exame → antes do exame.

This contraction is obligatory in standard written Portuguese (Portugal). It would sound wrong or very unnatural not to contract it in this case.

What does the definite article in do exame imply? Could we say antes de um exame?

• antes do exame = before the exam (a specific, known exam: the one we’re talking about).
• antes de um exame = before an exam (any exam, a non-specific one).

In your sentence, the idea is probably about a particular exam (e.g. tomorrow’s exam, the final exam), so do exame is the most natural choice.

If you’re speaking about exams in general, you could say:

• Antes de um exame, fico sempre nervoso.
  Before an exam, I always get nervous.

Can the order of the two parts of the sentence be reversed?

Yes. You can put the result clause first:

• Ainda fico nervoso antes do exame, por mais que eu estude.

Meaning stays the same: I still get nervous before the exam, no matter how much I study.

The comma is important to mark the pause between the two clauses. The choice of order is mostly about style and emphasis:

• Starting with Por mais que eu estude puts more emphasis on the effort.
• Starting with Ainda fico nervoso puts more emphasis on the result (being nervous).

Is this sentence specifically European Portuguese, or is it also used in Brazilian Portuguese?

This sentence is perfectly natural in both European and Brazilian Portuguese:

• Por mais que eu estude, ainda fico nervoso antes do exame.

The main small difference in practice:

• In Brazil, people often say prova for many school tests (before the test).
• In Portugal, exame is very common for a formal exam (national exams, university exams, etc.).

So in Brazil you might often hear:

• Por mais que eu estude, ainda fico nervoso antes da prova.

What tense is fico and why is the present used instead of a future form?

Fico is present indicative (1st person singular of ficar).

Portuguese often uses the present tense to talk about:

• habitual actions (what regularly happens),
• general truths,
• and sometimes future events in a fixed, scheduled context.

Here, fico nervoso means something like:

• I (always/usually) get nervous (whenever this situation happens: before an exam).

It describes a general pattern, not a single future occurrence, so the present is exactly the right choice.

Could I say sinto-me nervoso instead of fico nervoso? Would it change the meaning?

You could say:

• Por mais que eu estude, ainda me sinto nervoso antes do exame.

This is correct and natural. The nuance:

• fico nervoso → focuses slightly more on the change of state: I become nervous (as the exam approaches).
• me sinto nervoso → focuses more on the subjective feeling: I feel nervous.

In everyday speech, fico nervoso is very common and sounds slightly more idiomatic here, but me sinto nervoso is absolutely fine and perfectly understandable.