Os mirtilos ficam no frigorífico, ao lado das uvas.

Here, ficam is the present tense of ficar, and it means something like are, are kept, or are located.

A very important point for learners is that ficar has several meanings depending on context. It can mean:

• to stay
• to be located
• to become

In this sentence, it is the location meaning.

Also, ficam is 3rd person plural, because the subject os mirtilos is plural.

• o mirtilo fica
• os mirtilos ficam

Both can work, but they are not exactly the same in feel.

• Os mirtilos estão no frigorífico = the blueberries are in the fridge
• Os mirtilos ficam no frigorífico = the blueberries are kept in the fridge / their place is in the fridge

Using ficam often suggests a more usual or expected location, not just where they happen to be at this exact moment.

So:

• estão = simple current location
• ficam = where something stays or is normally kept

In a sentence about storing food, ficam sounds very natural.

Because Portuguese normally contracts em + o into no.

So:

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

That means:

• no frigorífico = in the fridge

You will see these contractions all the time in Portuguese.

Examples:

• na cozinha
• nos armários
• nas gavetas

In European Portuguese, frigorífico means fridge or refrigerator.

This is a very useful vocabulary point because it differs across varieties:

• European Portuguese: frigorífico
• Brazilian Portuguese: usually geladeira

So if you are learning Portuguese from Portugal, frigorífico is the normal everyday word.

Portuguese uses definite articles much more often than English.

So os mirtilos can mean:

• the blueberries
• or, in context, simply blueberries

This is completely normal in Portuguese, especially when talking about food, objects, or things already known from the context.

English often drops the article where Portuguese keeps it.

Examples:

• As maçãs estão na mesa
• O pão está no armário

A native English speaker often expects no article, but in Portuguese the article is usually preferred.

Ao lado de is a fixed expression meaning next to or beside.

It is built like this:

• a + o = ao
• lado = side
• de = of

So literally, ao lado de is something like at the side of.

Then:

• de + as = das

So:

• ao lado das uvas = next to the grapes

This is a very common structure, and it is best learned as a chunk:

• ao lado de mim = next to me
• ao lado da porta = next to the door
• ao lado do leite = next to the milk

Because the expression is ao lado de, and here de combines with the article as:

• de + as = das

So the full structure is:

• ao lado de as uvas → ao lado das uvas

Also, just like with os mirtilos, Portuguese often uses articles where English may not.

So das uvas is the natural form here.

Yes. In Portugal, mirtilos is the standard word for blueberries.

The singular is:

• mirtilo = blueberry

The plural is:

• mirtilos = blueberries

So in this sentence, the plural is used because we are talking about more than one blueberry.

Not always. You could also write:

• Os mirtilos ficam no frigorífico ao lado das uvas.

That version is very natural.

The comma creates a slight pause and can make the sentence easier to read, especially for learners. It separates the main location no frigorífico from the more specific detail ao lado das uvas.

In everyday writing, many native speakers would omit the comma.

Because the subject is plural:

• os mirtilos = plural

So the verb must also be plural:

• os mirtilos ficam

Compare:

• O mirtilo fica no frigorífico = singular
• Os mirtilos ficam no frigorífico = plural

This is basic subject-verb agreement, just as in English:

• the blueberry is
• the blueberries are

Yes, you could. Junto de can also mean next to or near.

So these are both possible:

• ao lado das uvas
• junto das uvas

However, ao lado de is often a clearer, more literal way to say right next to something. For a learner, it is a very useful and common expression to know.