A Ana pôs as malas na bagageira e disse que os carros na faixa da direita andavam mais depressa.

In European Portuguese, it is very common to use the definite article before a person’s first name: a Ana, o Pedro, a Maria.

So A Ana simply means Ana.

This is much more natural in Portuguese than in English, where we normally do not say the Ana. In Portuguese (especially in Portugal), this article is very normal in everyday speech.

Pôs is the pretérito perfeito (simple past) of the verb pôr, which means to put.

• infinitive: pôr
• present: põe = he/she puts
• simple past: pôs = he/she put

It is irregular, so learners usually just have to memorize it.

Examples:

• Ela põe a chave na mala. = She puts the key in the bag.
• Ela pôs a chave na mala. = She put the key in the bag.

The accent in pôs helps distinguish it from pois, which is a different word.

Both pôs and colocou can mean put in many contexts.

• pôr is very common and basic.
• colocar is also common, but can sound slightly more formal or neutral depending on context.

So:

• A Ana pôs as malas na bagageira
• A Ana colocou as malas na bagageira

Both are correct. In everyday language, pôr is extremely common.

Because na is a contraction of:

• em + a = na

So:

• na bagageira = in the boot / trunk

Other common contractions:

• no = em + o
• nos = em + os
• nas = em + as

Examples:

• no carro = in the car
• na rua = in the street
• nas malas = in the suitcases

In European Portuguese, bagageira usually means the boot of a car.

For an American English speaker, that is the trunk.

This is a good example of a word that can vary across varieties of Portuguese. In Portugal, bagageira is the normal word here.

Portuguese uses definite articles more often than English.

So where English might say:

• she put suitcases in the boot
• cars in the right lane

Portuguese often prefers:

• pôs as malas na bagageira
• os carros na faixa da direita

Here, the articles suggest we are talking about specific suitcases and specific cars in that situation, not just suitcases or cars in general.

Disse is the simple past of dizer = to say.

• ele/ela diz = he/she says
• ele/ela disse = he/she said

The word que means that here, introducing reported speech:

• disse que... = said that...

So the structure is:

• A Ana ... disse que ...
• Ana ... said that ...

This is the normal way to report what someone said in Portuguese.

Andavam is the imperfect of andar.

Here andar does not mean literally to walk. It can also mean to be going / moving / traveling, especially with vehicles.

So:

• os carros andavam mais depressa = the cars were going faster

Why imperfect (andavam)? Because it presents the action as ongoing, descriptive, or seen as a general situation in the past.

It fits well after disse que when reporting what Ana said about the traffic situation.

Compare:

• andavam mais depressa = were going faster / used to go faster
• foram mais depressa = went faster (more completed, less natural here)
• iam mais depressa = were going faster / were moving faster, also possible in some contexts

In this sentence, andavam sounds very natural.

Yes, andar can mean to walk, but it also has broader meanings such as:

• to go
• to move
• to be traveling
• to be running/operating, depending on context

With vehicles, andar often means to move/go along.

Examples:

• O carro anda bem. = The car runs well.
• Os carros andavam devagar. = The cars were moving slowly.

So in this sentence, andavam mais depressa means the cars were traveling faster, not walking.

Faixa here means a lane of traffic.

So:

• faixa da direita = the right-hand lane

Literally, da direita means of the right:

• de + a = da

So:

• na faixa da direita = in the right lane

This is a very common way to describe lanes in Portuguese:

• faixa da esquerda = left lane
• faixa do meio = middle lane

Portuguese often uses a structure like:

• o da esquerda = the one on the left
• a da direita = the one on the right
• a faixa da direita = the lane on the right / the right-hand lane

So da direita is a natural noun modifier here. It is not exactly the same as simply using an adjective after the noun.

Think of it as:

• the lane of the right side which in natural English becomes:
• the right lane

This structure is extremely common in Portuguese.

Yes, mais rápido is possible in many contexts, but mais depressa is very common and very natural here.

• depressa = quickly / fast
• mais depressa = faster / more quickly

So:

• andavam mais depressa means
• were going faster

You may also hear:

• mais rápido
• mais rapidamente

But mais depressa is often the most idiomatic everyday choice in this kind of sentence.

They are close, but they are not used in exactly the same way.

• depressa is an adverb: quickly / fast
• rápido is usually an adjective: fast / quick

Examples:

• Ela fala depressa. = She speaks quickly.
• Ele é rápido. = He is fast.

In everyday Portuguese, people often use rápido in adverb-like ways too, especially in speech, but depressa is a very standard and natural choice in a sentence like this.

This phrase means the cars in the right lane.

The structure is:

• os carros = the cars
• na faixa da direita = in the right lane

Portuguese often places this location phrase directly after the noun it describes, just like English can do:

• the cars in the right lane

So the phrase is working as:

• [the cars] [in the right lane]

Then the verb comes after:

• os carros na faixa da direita andavam mais depressa

Because the subject is os carros, which is plural.

So the verb must agree with it:

• o carro andava = the car was going
• os carros andavam = the cars were going

Even though Ana is singular at the beginning of the sentence, andavam does not refer to Ana. It refers to os carros.

Yes. A very helpful breakdown is:

1. A Ana pôs as malas na bagageira
   = Ana put the suitcases in the boot.

2. e disse que
   = and said that

3. os carros na faixa da direita andavam mais depressa
   = the cars in the right lane were going faster

So the whole structure is:

• main action 1: Ana put the suitcases in the boot
• main action 2: Ana said something
• reported content: the cars in the right lane were going faster

That kind of breakdown is often the easiest way to process longer Portuguese sentences.