Breakdown of A voz da Ana treme quando ela fala em público, mas depois deixa de tremer.
Questions & Answers about A voz da Ana treme quando ela fala em público, mas depois deixa de tremer.
Why is it A voz da Ana and not A voz de Ana?
In European Portuguese, it is very common to use the definite article before a person’s name: a Ana, o João.
So:
- de + a Ana → da Ana
- A voz da Ana = Ana’s voice / the voice of Ana
Without the article, de Ana is not impossible in all contexts, but da Ana sounds much more natural in everyday Portuguese from Portugal.
Why does Portuguese use the voice of Ana instead of something like Ana’s voice?
What tense is treme?
Treme is the present indicative of the verb tremer (to tremble, to shake).
Conjugation:
- eu tremo
- tu tremes
- ele/ela/você treme
Here, A voz da Ana treme means Ana’s voice trembles / is trembling, depending on context. Portuguese often uses the simple present where English might use either:
- trembles
- is trembling
Why is it quando ela fala em público and not just quando fala em público?
What does em público mean exactly?
Why is fala in the present tense too?
Because the sentence describes something that generally happens to Ana.
This is a habitual or general truth, so Portuguese uses the present tense:
- treme
- fala
- deixa
English often does the same in this kind of sentence.
What does depois mean here?
What does deixa de tremer mean? Is it literally leaves of trembling?
No. Deixar de + infinitive is a very common structure meaning:
- to stop doing something
- to cease doing something
- sometimes to no longer do something
So:
- deixa de tremer = stops trembling
Examples:
- Deixei de fumar. = I stopped smoking.
- Ela deixou de estudar. = She stopped studying.
So here deixa is not the everyday meaning to leave. It is part of the expression deixar de + infinitive.
Why is tremer repeated at the end instead of using a pronoun?
Because after deixar de, Portuguese normally uses an infinitive:
- deixar de tremer
- deixar de falar
- deixar de chover
So the repetition is completely natural. Portuguese does not usually replace the second verb with something shorter in this structure.
The sentence literally follows this pattern:
- [subject] + deixa de + [infinitive]
What is the subject of deixa de tremer? Is it Ana or her voice?
Grammatically, the subject is still A voz da Ana.
So the full structure is:
The thing that trembles is the voice, and the thing that later stops trembling is also the voice.
Even though Ana is mentioned in the middle clause (quando ela fala em público), the main subject of the whole sentence remains A voz da Ana.
Why is there no possessive like a sua voz?
Portuguese often prefers a voz da Ana instead of a sua voz when it wants to be clear.
Why?
Because sua can be ambiguous. It might mean:
- her
- his
- your (depending on variety and context)
So a voz da Ana is clearer and very natural.
Could this sentence also be written with fica a tremer or está a tremer?
Those would change the meaning slightly.
- treme = states the fact simply
- está a tremer = emphasizes that the trembling is happening at that moment
- fica a tremer = can suggest ends up trembling or starts remaining in that state
The original sentence uses treme, which is the most neutral and straightforward choice for a general description.
Is this sentence especially European Portuguese?
Yes, it fits European Portuguese very naturally, especially because of things like:
Also, in European Portuguese, if you wanted a progressive form, you would typically say:
- está a tremer
- está a falar
whereas Brazilian Portuguese often prefers:
- está tremendo
- está falando
But the sentence as written is correct and natural in Portugal.
How is treme pronounced in European Portuguese?
In European Portuguese, treme is pronounced approximately like TREH-muh, but the final vowel is often very reduced.
A rough guide:
- tre- sounds like treh
- -me is not a strong mee sound; it is weaker, more like muh or a very reduced vowel
Also, European Portuguese tends to reduce unstressed vowels more than Brazilian Portuguese, so the ending may sound less clear to English-speaking learners.
Can quando mean whenever here, not just when?
Why is mas used here?
Could I say para de tremer instead of deixa de tremer?
Yes, para de tremer is also possible and means stops trembling.
However, there is a slight difference in style:
- parar de + infinitive = very common, direct, everyday
- deixar de + infinitive = also very common, sometimes a little more neutral or formal depending on context
So these are both natural:
- mas depois para de tremer
- mas depois deixa de tremer
The original version is perfectly good Portuguese.
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