Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Uma adepta ao meu lado torce pela mesma equipa que eu. - A female supporter next to me roots for the same team as I do.

Uma adepta ao meu lado torce pela mesma equipa que eu.

A female supporter next to me roots for the same team as I do.

Breakdown of Uma adepta ao meu lado torce pela mesma equipa que eu.

Elon.io is an online learning platform

We have an entire course teaching Portuguese grammar and vocabulary.

Start learning Portuguese now

Questions & Answers about Uma adepta ao meu lado torce pela mesma equipa que eu.

Why is it uma adepta and not um adepto?

Uma is the feminine form of the indefinite article (um/uma = a/an), so the noun it introduces must also be feminine.

um adepto = a (male) supporter/fan
uma adepta = a (female) supporter/fan

In Portuguese, most nouns referring to people have masculine and feminine forms:

o professor / a professora – the (male/female) teacher
o amigo / a amiga – the (male/female) friend
o adepto / a adepta – the (male/female) supporter/fan

Since the sentence is talking about a woman, it uses uma adepta.

What exactly does adepta mean here? Is it the same as fã?

In this sentence, uma adepta means a (female) supporter / fan, typically of a sports team.

Nuances:

adepto/adepta – common in European Portuguese for sports fans, but also for supporter/follower of an idea, ideology, etc.
- um adepto do Benfica – a Benfica supporter
- uma adepta do vegetarianismo – a supporter of vegetarianism
fã – a more general word, used for fans of music, celebrities, films, sports, etc.
- sou fã do Ronaldo – I’m a fan of Ronaldo

In this specific sentence (about a team), adepta is very natural in Portugal.

How should I understand ao meu lado? Why ao and not something else?

Ao meu lado literally means at my side / by my side / next to me.

ao is a contraction of a + o (to/at + the, masculine singular).
lado = side
meu = my

So: a + o lado + meu → ao meu lado = at the side (that is) mine → by my side.

You might also see:

do meu lado – literally on my side; often used more figuratively:
- Ele está do meu lado. – He’s on my side (supports me).
perto de mim – near me / close to me.

For physically next to me, ao meu lado is the most straightforward.

What does torce mean here? I thought torcer means to twist.

Torcer does have a basic physical meaning to twist, but in sports it very commonly means to root for / to support (a team).

So:

torcer o tornozelo – to twist your ankle
torcer pela equipa – to root for / support the team

In your sentence, torce is 3rd person singular, present tense of torcer:

(ela) torce – she roots / she supports (in the context of sports)

So Uma adepta ao meu lado torce pela mesma equipa que eu =
A female fan next to me supports the same team as I (do).

Why is it torce pela and not torce por a or something else?

Pela is a contraction:

pela = por + a (for + the, feminine singular)

The structure is:

torcer por + [something] – to root for / support [something]
por + a equipa → pela equipa

Because equipa is feminine (a equipa), por a must contract to pela:

torcer por o time → pelo time (masculine, in Brazil)
torcer por a equipa → pela equipa (feminine, in Portugal)

So torce pela mesma equipa = roots for the same team.

What does mesma do here, and why does it come before equipa?

Mesma means same and works as an adjective. It must agree in gender and number with the noun:

a mesma equipa – the same team (feminine singular)
o mesmo clube – the same club (masculine singular)
as mesmas pessoas – the same people (feminine plural)

In Portuguese, many adjectives can go either before or after the noun, but mesmo/mesma in the sense of same normally comes before:

a mesma equipa (natural)
a equipa mesma (sounds odd or very marked/poetic)

So pela mesma equipa = for the same team.

Why is it equipa and not equipe or time? Is this European Portuguese?

Yes, this is European Portuguese.

equipa – standard spelling in Portugal for a sports team.
equipe – in Portugal, used mainly for a work team or staff (e.g., equipa/equipe médica = medical team). The spelling equipa is preferred for sports.
time – in Brazilian Portuguese, this is the usual word for a sports team:
- torcer pelo mesmo time que eu – BP version.

So:

Portugal: a equipa (sports)
Brazil: o time (sports)

The sentence is clearly in European Portuguese because of uma adepta, equipa, and the general feel.

Why does the sentence end in que eu? Isn’t something missing?

Grammatically, what is understood but not repeated is the verb torcer:

…torce pela mesma equipa que eu [torço].
…roots for the same team that I [root for].

In English we often drop the repeated verb (She supports the same team as I do), and Portuguese does the same.

So que eu here is a relative clause with ellipsis:

que – that/which
eu – I

Full form (less natural in everyday speech):

Uma adepta ao meu lado torce pela mesma equipa que eu torço.

Leaving torço out is very normal and completely correct.

Why que eu and not como eu at the end?

Both exist, but they’re slightly different:

pela mesma equipa que eu (torço) – same team that I (support)
- Stresses the sameness of the object (the team is the same).
pela mesma equipa como eu – technically possible, but sounds odd and is much less natural here. Como eu more often compares manner or way (like I do), not identity of the object.

For “the same team as I (do)”, que eu is the normal, idiomatic choice:

Ele gosta das mesmas coisas que eu. – He likes the same things as I (do).

Why is there no subject pronoun before torce? Why not ela torce?

Portuguese is a pro‑drop language: subject pronouns are often omitted because the verb ending already shows the subject.

(Ela) torce – she roots
torce alone is clearly 3rd person singular, so we don’t need ela.

In your sentence, the subject is already clear from uma adepta ao meu lado:

Uma adepta ao meu lado torce… – A female supporter next to me roots…

You would use ela for emphasis or contrast:

Uma adepta ao meu lado torce pela mesma equipa que eu, mas ela é mais fanática.
A fan next to me supports the same team as I do, but she is more fanatical.

What tense is torce, and does it mean she is doing it now or in general?

Torce is present indicative, 3rd person singular of torcer.

It can express:

A general/habitual fact:
- Ela torce pelo Porto. – She supports Porto (in general).
A current action (in sports contexts, often understood as “is rooting (right now)”):
- During a game: Ela torce muito! – She’s really rooting/cheering!

European Portuguese also has a progressive form:

está a torcer pela mesma equipa que eu – is rooting for the same team as I am.

But for sports, the simple present torce very often covers the “right now” meaning in context.

Can adepta be used outside sports?

Yes. Adepto/adepta can mean supporter / adherent / follower of ideas, causes, or lifestyles:

um adepto da energia renovável – a supporter of renewable energy
uma adepta da meditação – someone who practices/is into meditation

So:

In sports: fan/supporter
In other contexts: supporter / adherent / proponent

In your sentence, the presence of equipa and torce pela clearly makes it a sports fan.

Is there any difference between Uma adepta ao meu lado torce… and Ao meu lado, uma adepta torce…?

Both are correct and mean the same thing. The difference is focus/emphasis:

Uma adepta ao meu lado torce…
– Neutral order; introduces a fan, then specifies where she is.
Ao meu lado, uma adepta torce…
– Starts by highlighting the location (“by my side”), then introduces a fan there.

In everyday speech, the original version (Uma adepta ao meu lado torce…) is slightly more natural, but both are fine.