As sementes brotaram hoje.

As is the feminine plural definite article, meaning the.

It matches sementes because:

• semente is a feminine noun
• sementes is plural

So:

• a semente = the seed
• as sementes = the seeds

Portuguese articles have to agree with the noun in gender and number.

The singular noun is semente = seed.

Its plural is formed regularly:

• semente → sementes

Many Portuguese nouns ending in -e make the plural by adding -s.

Also, even though the noun ends in -e, it is still feminine, which is something you simply learn with the word:

• a semente
• as sementes

Brotaram is the 3rd person plural of the preterite of brotar.

So:

• brotar = to sprout
• brotaram = they sprouted

It agrees with as sementes because that subject is plural.

A quick pattern:

• eu brotei = I sprouted
• tu brotaste = you sprouted
• ele/ela brotou = he/she/it sprouted
• eles/elas brotaram = they sprouted

Because the subject is as sementes = the seeds, which is plural.

In Portuguese, verbs change to match the subject:

• A semente brotou hoje. = The seed sprouted today.
• As sementes brotaram hoje. = The seeds sprouted today.

So brotou is singular, and brotaram is plural.

Not always exactly, but they are close.

Brotar usually means to sprout, to bud, or to begin growing out.
With seeds, it can often be translated as to sprout or sometimes to germinate, depending on context.

So in this sentence, sprouted is often the most natural translation.

Hoje means today, and putting it at the end is a very natural word order in Portuguese.

This sentence follows a common pattern:

• Subject + verb + time expression
• As sementes brotaram hoje.

But Portuguese is fairly flexible. You could also say:

• Hoje, as sementes brotaram.

That version puts more emphasis on today.

Grammatically, you might see article omission in special styles such as:

• headlines
• notes
• scientific or very condensed writing

But in normal everyday Portuguese, as sementes brotaram hoje sounds much more natural.

Using as usually suggests we are talking about specific seeds already known in the context.

This is a very common question, especially for English speakers.

In Portuguese, the preterite (brotaram) is normally used for a completed event, even if it happened today.

So:

• As sementes brotaram hoje. is perfectly natural.

European Portuguese does not use the present perfect in the same way English does.

In fact, Portuguese ter + past participle often has a more repeated or ongoing over time meaning, not just a single completed event.

So for a one-time event today, brotaram is the normal choice.

You would say:

• A semente brotou hoje.

Changes:

• as → a
• sementes → semente
• brotaram → brotou

Everything changes to match the singular noun.

A simple pronunciation guide is:

• As sounds roughly like ush or a very short ash, depending on speech and what follows.
• sementes is roughly suh-MEN-tesh
• brotaram is roughly bru-TA-rum with a nasal ending
• hoje is roughly OH-zhuh

A few European Portuguese features to notice:

• unstressed vowels are often reduced
• final -s in sementes is pronounced like sh
• the j in hoje sounds like the s in measure
• final -am in brotaram is nasal

Yes, to some extent.

These are all possible, though with slightly different emphasis:

• As sementes brotaram hoje. = neutral
• Hoje, as sementes brotaram. = emphasis on today
• Brotaram hoje as sementes. = possible, but less neutral and more stylistically marked

For a learner, the most natural default order is:

• As sementes brotaram hoje.

It means the sprouting happened today, at some point during the day.

It does not have to mean right now. It simply places the event within today.

So the sentence presents the sprouting as a completed event that happened on the current day.