Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): Ele não quer largar o telemóvel durante o jantar. - He doesn’t want to put down the phone during dinner.

this is grammatically possible but unusual and has a different nuance:
He wants not to put down the phone (the negation is specifically on the act of putting it down, not on the wanting).

In everyday speech, to say “He doesn’t want to put the phone down”, you negate the main verb:

Ele não quer largar o telemóvel. ✅

What does "largar" really mean here, and how is it different from words like "deixar" or "pôr"?

"Largar" literally means to let go (of), drop, release. In this context it’s idiomatic for “put down / stop holding / stop using” the phone.

Some nuances:

largar o telemóvel
– to let go of / put down the phone (stop holding/using it)
deixar o telemóvel
– can mean “leave the phone (somewhere)” or “leave the phone alone”, depending on context
pôr o telemóvel na mesa
– “put the phone on the table” (more about physically placing it somewhere)
largar o trabalho
– quit/leave your job

In European Portuguese, "largar" is very natural with phones, cigarettes, etc.:

Ele não larga o telemóvel.
= He never lets go of his phone / He’s always on his phone.

Why do we say "o telemóvel" and not just "telemóvel"? Is the article necessary?

Portuguese uses the definite article ("o", "a", "os", "as") more often than English does.

Here, "o telemóvel" means “the phone” in a specific sense: his phone / that phone we both know about.

Ele não quer largar o telemóvel.
= He doesn’t want to put the phone down (the one he’s using).

You could say "Ele não quer largar telemóvel", but it would sound unnatural or incomplete in European Portuguese.

In general, when referring to a specific, known object, you almost always use the article:

Põe o telemóvel na mesa. = Put the phone on the table.
Esqueci-me do telemóvel. = I forgot my phone.

Is "telemóvel" specific to European Portuguese? What would Brazilians say?

Yes. "Telemóvel" is the standard word in European Portuguese (Portugal).

In Brazilian Portuguese, people say "celular" (short for telefone celular).

So the equivalent Brazilian sentence would be:

Ele não quer largar o celular durante o jantar.

What exactly does "durante o jantar" mean here? Is it “at dinner” or “while we are eating dinner”?

"Durante o jantar" literally means “during the dinner” and implies:

while dinner is happening / while people are eating.

So it’s close to:

at dinner,
during dinner, or
while we’re having dinner.

It focuses on the whole time period of the meal, not just the moment it starts.

Could I say "no jantar" instead of "durante o jantar"? Is there a difference?

You can say "no jantar", but the nuance changes slightly.

durante o jantar
– during the whole dinner period; stresses the duration.
no jantar
– more like “at dinner / at the dinner” (a bit more point-like or event-like).

Compare:

Ele não quer largar o telemóvel durante o jantar.
– He won’t put the phone down while we’re eating.
Ele não larga o telemóvel ao jantar. (also common in Portugal)
– He never puts the phone down at dinnertime (habitually).

In your original sentence, "durante o jantar" is the most natural way to emphasize “while we’re eating.”

Could the word order be "Ele não quer durante o jantar largar o telemóvel"?

That word order is technically possible but sounds awkward and unnatural in everyday speech.

Neutral, natural order:

Ele não quer largar o telemóvel durante o jantar. ✅

Moving "durante o jantar" into the middle:

Ele não quer durante o jantar largar o telemóvel.
– sounds heavy, almost like you’re over‑clarifying or writing in a very formal, stylized way.

Basic rule: keep the verb phrase together and place most time expressions before or after it, not inside it.

If I replace "o telemóvel" with "it", where does the object pronoun go in Portuguese?

The direct object pronoun for "o telemóvel" (masculine singular) is "o" (or "lo" in some positions).

You have two main options in European Portuguese:

Before the conjugated verb (most common in speech):
- Ele não o quer largar.
  = He doesn’t want to let it go.
Attached to the infinitive (more formal/written, but still used):
- Ele não quer largá‑lo.

Both are correct. In everyday European Portuguese speech, you’ll hear "Ele não o quer largar" more often.

Could I drop the subject pronoun "Ele" and just say "Não quer largar o telemóvel durante o jantar"?

Yes. Portuguese is a “null subject” language, so you can often omit subject pronouns when the verb form makes the subject clear.

Ele não quer largar o telemóvel durante o jantar.
Não quer largar o telemóvel durante o jantar.

Both are grammatically correct. The second one relies on context to know who “he” is. In conversation, if it’s already clear who you’re talking about, omitting "Ele" is very natural.

Why is it "quer" and not something like "quere"? How is "querer" conjugated here?

The infinitive is "querer" (to want), but it’s irregular.

In the present tense, 3rd person singular (ele/ela/você), the correct form is:

ele quer (not quere)

A few forms for reference (Presente do Indicativo):

eu quero
tu queres
ele/ela/você quer
nós queremos
vocês/eles/elas querem

So your sentence correctly uses "Ele não quer ...".

Is there any difference in tone between "largar o telemóvel" and something like "pôr o telemóvel de lado"?

Yes, there’s a small nuance:

largar o telemóvel
– more direct, can sound a bit blunt: let go of the phone / drop the phone.
– also used figuratively for “give up” (e.g. largar o vício = give up the habit).
pôr o telemóvel de lado
– literally “put the phone aside”; sounds slightly softer/politer, focusing on setting it aside rather than “dropping” it.

In everyday talk about someone constantly on their phone, "largar o telemóvel" is very common and natural in European Portuguese.

How is "telemóvel" pronounced, and what does the accent mark on "móvel" tell me?

"Telemóvel" is pronounced approximately:

[te-le-MO-vel]

The acute accent (´) on "mó" shows:

Stress: the main stress falls on "mó": tele*MÓ*vel.
Open vowel quality: the ó is an open /ɔ/ sound, not the closed /o/ (you don’t need to worry too much about this at the beginning, but that’s the function).

Without the accent, by default the stress would fall on the second‑to‑last syllable, but "móvel" breaks that pattern, so the accent is needed.

Could I use "enquanto" instead of "durante", like "enquanto jantamos"?

Yes. That’s another natural way to express the same idea, but the grammar changes:

Ele não quer largar o telemóvel durante o jantar.
– He doesn’t want to put the phone down during dinner.
Ele não quer largar o telemóvel enquanto jantamos.
– He doesn’t want to put the phone down while we are eating dinner.

"Enquanto" is a conjunction meaning “while”, so it introduces a clause:

enquanto jantamos = while we eat / are eating dinner.

Both structures are common; "durante o jantar" is slightly simpler and more direct.