Breakdown of Hoje o quilo de morangos está mais barato do que ontem.
Questions & Answers about Hoje o quilo de morangos está mais barato do que ontem.
Because the sentence is talking about the price per kilo, not about strawberries in general.
- morangos = strawberries
- o quilo de morangos = a kilo of strawberries / the kilo of strawberries
In shops and markets, Portuguese often uses this kind of expression to talk about unit price:
- O quilo de maçãs
- O litro de leite
- O pão está mais caro
Here, o quilo de morangos means something like the kilo of strawberries as a price unit.
The article o is the masculine singular definite article, meaning the.
So:
- o quilo = the kilo
In this kind of sentence, Portuguese often uses the definite article where English might use a kilo or just a general expression. It can sound natural in Portuguese to talk about the product category this way:
- O quilo de morangos está caro.
- O quilo das cerejas está barato.
So even though English might say A kilo of strawberries is cheaper today, Portuguese commonly uses o quilo.
Yes, but it would not mean exactly the same thing.
- um quilo de morangos = one kilo of strawberries
- o quilo de morangos = the kilo of strawberries, often referring to the price per kilo
Compare:
- Comprei um quilo de morangos. = I bought one kilo of strawberries.
- Hoje o quilo de morangos está mais barato. = Today a kilo of strawberries is cheaper / the price per kilo is cheaper.
So um quilo focuses more on quantity, while o quilo often refers to the standard selling unit.
Because de is used to link the measure to the thing being measured.
- um quilo de morangos = a kilo of strawberries
- um litro de água = a litre of water
- uma caixa de bolachas = a box of biscuits
This is very similar to English of in a kilo of strawberries.
Portuguese uses estar for states or conditions that are seen as temporary or changeable, and ser for more permanent or defining characteristics.
Price is usually treated as something that can change, so Portuguese normally says:
- está barato = is cheap
- está caro = is expensive
Here the price is cheaper today than yesterday, so it is clearly a changing situation. That is why está is the natural choice.
Because barato agrees with quilo, which is:
- masculine
- singular
So:
- o quilo → masculine singular
- barato → masculine singular
Agreement examples:
- O quilo está barato.
- A caixa está barata.
- Os morangos estão baratos.
- As cerejas estão baratas.
Even though morangos is plural, the adjective is describing quilo, not morangos.
This is the normal comparative pattern for adjectives in Portuguese:
- mais + adjective = more + adjective
So:
- mais barato = cheaper / more cheap
- mais caro = more expensive
- mais rápido = faster
In this sentence:
- está mais barato = is cheaper
This is the comparison structure:
- mais ... do que ... = more ... than ...
So:
- mais barato do que ontem = cheaper than yesterday
The do is actually a contraction:
- de + o = do
Historically and structurally, this appears in many comparisons after mais and menos.
Examples:
- mais caro do que antes
- mais rápido do que eu
- menos difícil do que parece
You may also hear mais barato que ontem. That is also common. But do que is very standard and clear.
Portuguese usually expresses than in comparisons with que or do que, rather than with a completely separate word like English than.
So English:
- cheaper than yesterday
Portuguese:
- mais barato que ontem
- mais barato do que ontem
Both mean the same thing here.
Because Portuguese, like English, often leaves out words that are understood from the context.
- mais barato do que ontem literally compares today’s price with yesterday’s price
- There is no need to repeat estava or era
It works like English:
- cheaper than yesterday not necessarily
- cheaper than it was yesterday
Portuguese often prefers the shorter version when the meaning is obvious.
Putting Hoje at the start highlights the time frame immediately:
- Hoje o quilo de morangos está mais barato do que ontem.
This is very natural. It means something like As for today...
Portuguese word order is fairly flexible, so you could also say:
- O quilo de morangos está mais barato hoje do que ontem.
That is also understandable and natural, but starting with Hoje is very common when setting the scene.
Yes. Quilo is the normal everyday word.
- quilograma is the full, more formal term
- quilo is the usual spoken form
In daily life, people normally say:
- um quilo de batatas
- meio quilo de carne
- o quilo das maçãs
So quilo here is completely normal European Portuguese.
It refers to the price being lower.
In Portuguese, expressions like:
- está barato
- está caro
are often used about products, but what is really meant is that the price is cheap or expensive.
So o quilo de morangos está mais barato means:
- the price per kilo is lower
- strawberries cost less per kilo today
Yes, that is the natural idea, but with a more specific focus on the price per kilo.
So the sentence is not just about strawberries in a vague way. It specifically talks about the standard market unit:
- the kilo of strawberries
- in other words, the price per kilo
That is a very common way to speak about food prices in Portuguese.
A very natural English version would be:
- Today strawberries are cheaper per kilo than yesterday.
- Today a kilo of strawberries is cheaper than yesterday.
- Today the price of strawberries per kilo is lower than yesterday.
The Portuguese sentence is concise and idiomatic, especially in the context of shopping or market prices.