Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): A paragem de autocarro fica à frente da escola.

A paragem de autocarro = the bus stop (the one both speaker and listener can identify).
Uma paragem de autocarro would sound like a bus stop (any bus stop, not a specific one).

In this sentence, we assume the speaker and listener know which bus stop is being referred to, so A paragem is natural.

Why is it paragem de autocarro and not something like paragem do autocarro?

Paragem de autocarro is a general noun–noun pattern:

paragem de autocarro = a bus stop (a place for buses in general)
literally “stop of bus”, but idiomatically “bus stop”.

If you said paragem do autocarro, that would suggest:

“the stop of the bus” – a stop that belongs to or is associated with a specific bus.

So:

paragem de autocarro – the normal, generic term: bus stop.
paragem do autocarro 25 – the stop of bus number 25 (more specific).

Could it also be paragem de autocarros (plural)?

You can sometimes see paragem de autocarros, but:

paragem de autocarro (singular) is the standard fixed expression in European Portuguese for “bus stop”.
The singular autocarro often works like an uncountable noun in this kind of structure, meaning “bus transport” in general.

So you should normally learn and use:

a paragem de autocarro = the bus stop.

What’s the difference between autocarro and ônibus?

Both mean bus, but:

autocarro – standard word in European Portuguese (Portugal).
ônibus – standard word in Brazilian Portuguese (spelled ônibus, pronounced with nasal “ô”).

So, the European Portuguese sentence:

A paragem de autocarro fica à frente da escola.

In Brazilian Portuguese would more likely be:

O ponto de ônibus fica em frente à escola.

Why is it fica and not está or é?

Ficar and estar can both be used for location, but there’s a nuance:

estar = simply describes where something is right now.
- A paragem de autocarro *está à frente da escola.* – grammatically fine.
ficar = often used to say where something is located / situated in a more “map-like”, descriptive or direction-giving way.
- A paragem de autocarro *fica à frente da escola.* – sounds natural when explaining where it is, giving directions, etc.

You would not use é for location of objects/buildings in Portuguese (unlike some uses of “to be” in English). É is for inherent characteristics, identity, time, etc.

What exactly does fica mean here?

Fica is the 3rd person singular present of ficar.

In this context, ficar means:

“to be located / to be situated / to be (position-wise)”

So fica here = “is (located)”.

Other common uses of ficar (not in this sentence) are:

ficar cansado – to become tired
ficar em casa – to stay at home

Why is it à frente da escola and not just a frente da escola without the accent?

The à here is a contraction of:

a (preposition, “to / at / in”)
a (definite article, feminine singular, “the”)
= à (with a grave accent)

So:

a frente (no accent) – almost never correct in this context.
à frente da escola – literally “at the front of the school” → “in front of the school”.

This contraction (called crase in Portuguese) happens when a + a combine.
You write à (with accent) to show that combination.

Why is it da escola and not de a escola or do escola?

De (“of/from”) often contracts with the definite article that follows:

de + a (feminine singular “the”) → da
de + o (masculine singular “the”) → do

Since escola is feminine:

article: a escola – the school
with de: de a escola → da escola

So: à frente da escola, not à frente de a escola and not do escola (wrong gender).

How do you know that escola is feminine and paragem is feminine?

You mostly have to learn the gender with each noun, but there are patterns:

Many words ending in -agem are feminine:
- a paragem, a viagem, a mensagem.
Many nouns ending in -a are feminine:
- a escola, a casa, a porta.

So:

a paragem (feminine)
a escola (feminine)

That’s why you see A paragem… and da escola.

What is the difference between à frente de, em frente de, and na frente de?

All can be translated as “in front of”, but there are nuances:

em frente de – very common for physical position directly opposite something.
- O autocarro está em frente da escola. – The bus is (parked) in front of the school.
à frente de – can mean ahead of / in front of in a more general or directional sense (also in rankings, queues, etc.).
- A paragem de autocarro fica à frente da escola. – The bus stop is located ahead of / in front of the school.
na frente de – literally “in the front of”; often for being in someone’s way / blocking / right at the front side.
- Ele está na frente da porta. – He’s right in front of (blocking) the door.

In everyday speech, em frente de and à frente de often overlap.
In this sentence, à frente da escola is perfectly natural in European Portuguese.

Could I also say A paragem de autocarro está à frente da escola?

Yes, that is grammatically correct.

Differences in feel:

fica – a bit more like “is located / is situated”, often used when giving directions or describing positions on a map.
está – more neutral “is (there)”.

Both are fine; fica is especially common in directions:

O supermercado fica ali. – The supermarket is (located) there.

Could I change the word order to À frente da escola fica a paragem de autocarro?

Yes. That word order is also correct and natural.

A paragem de autocarro fica à frente da escola. – neutral order, subject first.
À frente da escola fica a paragem de autocarro. – emphasizes the location “in front of the school”.

Portuguese allows this kind of inversion, especially to:

put focus on a particular part of the sentence, or
give a more literary or descriptive tone.

Why is there no word like “it” in the sentence? Why don’t we say something like Ela fica à frente da escola?

Portuguese is a pro‑drop language: subject pronouns (eu, tu, ele, ela, etc.) are often omitted when the verb form already shows who/what the subject is.

Here:

The subject is clearly A paragem de autocarro.
So you do not add ela (“she/it”) before fica.

You could say:

Ela fica à frente da escola. – but only if the subject (what “ela” refers to) was already mentioned just before and is clear from context. You still wouldn’t say both A paragem de autocarro ela fica… – that would be wrong or at least very unnatural.

Is paragem de autocarro the only way to say “bus stop” in Portugal?

The standard and widely understood term in Portugal is:

a paragem de autocarro

You may also hear:

paragem de camioneta – in some regions, where camioneta can mean intercity/coaches or buses.

But for everyday city buses, paragem de autocarro is the safest and most standard expression to learn.

How would a Brazilian usually say this sentence?

A natural Brazilian Portuguese version would be:

O ponto de ônibus fica em frente à escola.

Key changes:

o ponto (de ônibus) instead of a paragem de autocarro
ônibus instead of autocarro
em frente à escola is more common than à frente da escola in Brazil (though à frente de also exists with a slightly different nuance).