Eu levo o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar.

Yes, you can usually leave it out in Portuguese.

Portuguese is a pro-drop language, which means the subject pronoun is often omitted when the verb ending already makes the subject clear. So:

• Eu levo o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar.
• Levo o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar.

Both are correct.

Including Eu can add:

• emphasis
• contrast
• extra clarity

For example, Eu levo o lixo, mas tu lavas a loiça = I take out the rubbish, but you wash the dishes.

Levo is the 1st person singular present indicative of the verb levar.

So:

• eu levo = I take / I carry / I bring depending on context

In this sentence, it most naturally means something like:

• I take the rubbish to the bin
• or I take out the rubbish

The present tense here can describe:

• a habit or routine
• something you generally do
• something happening now, depending on context

Portuguese uses the definite article o / a / os / as more often than English does.

Here, o lixo means:

• the rubbish
• but in natural English we might simply say rubbish or the rubbish, depending on context

It refers to the rubbish in a specific, understood situation, such as the household rubbish.

So Portuguese often sounds more article-heavy than English:

• o lixo
• a loiça
• o jantar

This is very normal.

Ao is a contraction of:

• a
  • o = ao

So:

• ao caixote = to the bin

This happens because caixote is a masculine singular noun, so the article is o.

Other similar contractions:

• a + a = à
• de + o = do
• de + a = da
• em + o = no
• em + a = na

So ao is not a separate word you memorize by itself first; it is the result of combining a and o.

In Portugal, caixote can mean a bin, container, or trash receptacle, depending on context.

In this sentence, ao caixote means something like:

• to the bin
• to the rubbish bin

In European Portuguese, this is a natural word in this context. Depending on the situation, people might also say things like:

• contentor do lixo for a larger outside rubbish container
• other regional or situational alternatives

A learner coming from Brazilian Portuguese may expect a different word, such as lixeira, but caixote fits European Portuguese well here.

Both are possible, but they are not exactly the same.

Depois do jantar

• literally: after the dinner
• naturally: after dinner
• focuses on the meal/event as a noun: o jantar

Depois de jantar

• literally: after dining / after having dinner
• focuses more on the action of eating dinner

So:

• Eu levo o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar.
  = I take the rubbish to the bin after dinner.

• Eu levo o lixo ao caixote depois de jantar.
  = I take the rubbish to the bin after eating dinner.

In many situations, the difference is small, but it is still useful to notice it.

Because do is a contraction of:

• de
  • o = do

The expression is built from:

• depois de = after
• o jantar = the dinner / dinner

When combined:

• depois de o jantar becomes depois do jantar

This kind of contraction is extremely common in Portuguese and is something you will see all the time.

Yes. Portuguese often uses the present tense for routines and habitual actions, just like English does.

So Eu levo o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar can mean:

• I take the rubbish to the bin after dinner
• I usually take the rubbish out after dinner
• I take out the rubbish after dinner

If you wanted to make the habitual meaning more explicit, you could add words like:

• normalmente
• geralmente
• costumo

For example:

• Normalmente, levo o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar.
• Costumo levar o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar.

Yes. Portuguese allows some flexibility, especially with time expressions.

The original order is very natural:

• Eu levo o lixo ao caixote depois do jantar.

But these are also possible:

• Depois do jantar, eu levo o lixo ao caixote.
• Depois do jantar, levo o lixo ao caixote.

Putting depois do jantar at the beginning gives it more prominence, a bit like:

• After dinner, I take the rubbish to the bin.

The most neutral structure is still the original one.

Sometimes yes, but ao caixote is very natural here.

Very roughly:

• a / ao often suggests movement to a destination
• para can also mean to / towards / for, sometimes with a slightly stronger sense of direction or destination

In everyday speech, both prepositions can appear with movement verbs, but they are not always interchangeable in every context. In this sentence, levar o lixo ao caixote is a very normal choice.

So as a learner, the safest option for this exact sentence is:

• ao caixote

In European Portuguese, lixo is pronounced approximately like:

• LEE-shoo or more accurately LEE-shu, with a reduced final vowel

A few key points:

• x here sounds like sh
• the i is like the ee in see
• the final o in European Portuguese is often reduced, so it does not sound like a full English oh

So it is definitely not pronounced like:

• likso
• lizo

It is closer to:

• LEE-shu

The basic idea of levar is usually to take / carry away, while trazer is usually to bring.

So in this sentence:

• levar o lixo ao caixote = to take the rubbish to the bin

This matches the idea that the rubbish is moving away from where you are.

A useful contrast:

• levar = take
• trazer = bring

That said, as in many languages, exact translation can depend on perspective and context. But here take is the best match.