Breakdown of Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado, tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo.
Questions & Answers about Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado, tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo.
The structure quer X, quer Y is a fixed pattern meaning roughly “whether X or Y” or “whether you are X or Y”.
So:
- Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado ≈ Whether you are tired or busy
It is a way to present two (or more) alternatives that don’t change the result. Whatever the situation in the quer‑phrases is, the main clause remains true:
- Quer chova, quer faça sol, vamos à praia.
= Whether it rains or it is sunny, we’re going to the beach.
You repeat quer before each alternative (most often before two things, but you can extend it in more formal / literary style). It is common in written and somewhat formal spoken European Portuguese; in very casual speech you might more often hear estejas cansado ou ocupado instead, but quer … quer … is very idiomatic and correct.
Formally, quer is the 3rd‑person singular present indicative of querer (ele quer = he wants).
In this particular construction, though, quer behaves like a kind of conjunction or correlative word, not with its usual meaning to want. This is an idiomatic, fossilized use:
- quer A, quer B = seja A, seja B / tanto A como B / whether A or B
You do not normally change quer to match the person:
- You do not say “quero estejas cansado” or “queres estejas cansado” here.
- It stays as quer, like a fixed little particle introducing alternatives.
So in your sentence, ignore the normal meaning wants and read quer … quer … as a unit meaning whether … or ….
Estejas is the present subjunctive of estar (2nd person singular, tu).
Quer … quer … is one of those structures that trigger the subjunctive because we are talking about hypothetical or variable situations, not stating a simple fact:
- Estejas cansado, estejas ocupado = no matter whether you happen to be tired or busy
The speaker is not asserting you are tired or you are busy; they are covering different possible conditions under which the same advice applies. In Portuguese this is a classic context for the subjunctive.
Compare:
- Se estiveres cansado, descansa.
- Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado, tenta estudar.
Both se estiveres and quer estejas use the subjunctive because of this idea of possibility / condition, not a plain factual description.
Present subjunctive of estar in European Portuguese:
- (eu) esteja
- (tu) estejas
- (ele / ela / você) esteja
- (nós) estejamos
- (vós) estejais (rare in modern usage)
- (eles / elas / vocês) estejam
So estejas is the tu‑form, matching the informal you implied by tenta (see below).
Other examples:
- Espero que estejas bem. – I hope (that) you are well.
- É possível que eles estejam atrasados. – It is possible that they are late.
No, that would be incorrect in standard Portuguese.
After quer … quer … in this concessive / alternative sense, you should use the present subjunctive:
- ✅ Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado…
- ❌ Quer estás cansado, quer estás ocupado…
If you really want to use estás (present indicative), you would normally drop quer … quer and use a different structure:
- Se estás cansado ou ocupado, tenta na mesma estudar.
- Mesmo que estejas cansado ou ocupado, tenta estudar. (here again, subjunctive estejas is used with mesmo que)
So, keep estejas with quer … quer ….
You will hear and see both, but the canonical, more formal/careful form is to repeat quer:
More standard / balanced:
- Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado, tenta…
Possible in colloquial language:
- Quer estejas cansado ou ocupado, tenta…
The double quer gives the sentence a more rhythmic and emphatic feel and is the pattern you will see in careful writing and teaching materials. Using a single quer plus ou is less formal but understandable.
Tenta is the informal singular imperative (addressing tu). In European Portuguese:
Tu‑imperative (informal) often looks like the present indicative without the final -s for -ar verbs:
- (tu) tentas → imperative tenta
- (tu) falas → imperative fala
- (tu) estudas → imperative estuda
Você‑imperative (formal or more distant) uses the present subjunctive:
- (você) tente
- (você) fale
- (você) estude
So:
- Tenta cumprir… = Try to stick to… (informal tu)
- Tente cumprir… = Try to stick to… (more formal você)
Since the earlier verb is estejas (the tu form), it matches correctly with tenta (the tu imperative).
Cumprir means to fulfill, observe, stick to, comply with.
In this context, cumprir a disciplina de estudo is close to:
- stick to your study discipline / keep to your study routine / observe your study regimen
Nuances:
cumprir often carries a sense of meeting an obligation or a plan:
- cumprir prazos – meet deadlines
- cumprir regras – obey rules
- cumprir promessas – keep promises
seguir is more literally to follow, and is used too:
- seguir um plano de estudo – follow a study plan
You could say seguir a disciplina de estudo, but cumprir suggests a slightly stronger sense of duty/commitment to the routine or discipline.
Yes, disciplina de estudo is idiomatic and natural in European Portuguese, especially in slightly more formal or motivational contexts. It focuses on the personal discipline / self‑control involved in studying regularly.
Other common options, with slightly different emphasis:
- rotina de estudo – your study routine, the pattern of when/how you study
- hábito de estudo – your study habit
- plano de estudos – a structured study plan (often with specific tasks and dates)
Your sentence could be rephrased as:
- Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado, tenta manter a tua disciplina de estudo.
- … tenta manter a tua rotina de estudo.
But cumprir a disciplina de estudo is fine and stylistically natural.
The sentence has this structure:
- [Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado], [tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo].
The quer … quer … part is a subordinate concessive clause (setting conditions or alternatives). The main clause (the actual piece of advice) is:
- tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo
The comma separates the concessive part from the main clause. In writing, this comma is expected, because the quer … quer … unit works as an introductory clause.
So:
- ✅ Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado, tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo.
- Writing everything with no comma would be less clear and not standard.
Several structures can convey a similar idea:
Mesmo que
- subjunctive:
- Mesmo que estejas cansado ou ocupado, tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo.
= Even if you are tired or busy…
Se
- subjunctive / indicative (depending on nuance and register):
- Se estiveres cansado ou ocupado, tenta na mesma cumprir a disciplina de estudo.
(In spoken EP you might also hear Se estás cansado ou ocupado…, but estiveres is more “careful.”)
Estejas cansado ou ocupado, … (ellipsis of quer in very informal style):
- Estejas cansado ou ocupado, tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo.
(This is shorter and more informal, but less textbook‑like.)
- Estejas cansado ou ocupado, tenta cumprir a disciplina de estudo.
Among these, Mesmo que estejas cansado ou ocupado… is probably the closest in strength and tone to Quer estejas cansado, quer estejas ocupado…, but the original quer … quer … is very idiomatic and good to learn.