Nós vamos ao cinema ao sábado.

We go to the cinema on Saturdays.

Breakdown of Nós vamos ao cinema ao sábado.

• ir: to go
• nós: we
• o sábado: the Saturday
• o cinema: the cinema
• ao: to
• ao: while

Questions & Answers about Nós vamos ao cinema ao sábado.

What does ao mean, and why is it used twice: ao cinema and ao sábado?

Ao is a contraction of the preposition a (to / at) + the masculine singular article o (the).

So:

• ao cinema = a
  • o cinema → “to the cinema”
• ao sábado = a
  • o sábado → literally “on the Saturday” → idiomatically “on Saturdays”

Even though it’s the same form (ao), it plays two slightly different roles:

• with cinema: destination (where you go)
• with sábado: time/frequency (when you go, regularly on Saturdays)

Why is it ao sábado (singular) and not aos sábados (plural)?

In European Portuguese, it’s very common to express habitual actions with:

• ao sábado = on Saturdays (regular habit)
• à segunda, à terça, etc. = on Mondays, Tuesdays…

You can also say aos sábados, and it’s correct too. Nuance:

• ao sábado – very natural and common in Portugal; slightly more “fixed expression” style.
• aos sábados – also fine; explicitly plural, may sound a bit more “spelled out”.

In practice, both usually mean the same: a repeated habit on that day of the week.

Does Nós vamos ao cinema ao sábado mean one specific Saturday or every Saturday?

It means a habit, so “on Saturdays in general / every Saturday” (or at least regularly on Saturdays).

For one specific Saturday, you would normally use:

• Nós vamos ao cinema no sábado. = We’re going to the cinema on Saturday (this coming Saturday / a specific one in context).

So:

• ao sábado → habitual, repeated
• no sábado → a particular, identified Saturday

Can I drop Nós and just say Vamos ao cinema ao sábado?

Yes, and that’s very natural.

Portuguese verb endings show the subject, so the subject pronoun is often omitted:

• Nós vamos ao cinema ao sábado.
• Vamos ao cinema ao sábado.

Both are correct. Adding Nós can give a bit more emphasis on we as a group, but grammatically it’s not required.

Why is the present tense vamos used? Could it also mean future like “we are going to go”?

Vamos here is the present tense of ir (to go), and in this context it expresses a habitual present:

• Nós vamos ao cinema ao sábado.
  = We go to the cinema on Saturdays (as a routine).

The present in Portuguese is used for:

1. Habits / general facts – like here.
2. Near future, especially with a time expression:
   
   • Amanhã vamos ao cinema. = Tomorrow we’re going to the cinema.

You could say Iremos ao cinema (future tense), but for both habits and most natural near-future plans, vamos + time expression is far more common in everyday speech.

Why is it ao cinema and not no cinema? What’s the difference?

• ir ao cinema = go to the cinema (movement towards the place)
• estar no cinema = be at the cinema (location, no movement)

So:

• Vamos ao cinema. = We go / we are going to the cinema.
• Estamos no cinema. = We are at the cinema.

ao (a + o) focuses on going to;
no (em + o) focuses on being in/at.

Could I say Vamos para o cinema instead of Vamos ao cinema?

You can, but the most idiomatic everyday expression in European Portuguese is ir ao cinema.

Subtle difference:

• ir a (um lugar) – very common with public places/events:
  
  • ir ao cinema, ir ao teatro, ir ao supermercado.
• ir para (um lugar) – more about going to stay for some time or one’s general destination:
  
  • ir para casa, ir para a escola, ir para o Algarve.

In many contexts, ir para o cinema will still be understood as “go to the cinema”, but ir ao cinema is the standard, natural collocation.

Why is it ao cinema and not something like à cinema?

Because cinema is a masculine noun in Portuguese: o cinema.

The contractions work like this:

• a + o (masculine singular) → ao
• a + a (feminine singular) → à
• a + os (masculine plural) → aos
• a + as (feminine plural) → às

Since it’s o cinema, you must use ao cinema.

Can I change the word order, like Ao sábado, vamos ao cinema?

Yes. Some natural variants are:

• Ao sábado, nós vamos ao cinema.
• Ao sábado, vamos ao cinema.

Putting Ao sábado first slightly emphasizes the time/frequency (“As for Saturdays…”).

Another possible but less neutral option is:

• Nós, ao sábado, vamos ao cinema.

That adds some extra emphasis/contrast on Saturdays specifically. All of these are grammatically correct; the original order is perfectly normal and very common.

Would Brazilians say the same sentence, or is this more European Portuguese?

The sentence is fully understandable in Brazil, but there are some preference differences:

• In Portugal, ao sábado (singular) is very common for habits.
• In Brazil, aos sábados is more usual for that meaning.

So a very typical Brazilian version might be:

• Nós vamos ao cinema aos sábados.

They might also drop Nós: Vamos ao cinema aos sábados.

The verb vamos and the structure ir ao cinema are common to both varieties.