Adding Emphasis with é que
When you want to emphasize a specific detail in a declarative sentence—such as who did a DIY project or which tool they used—you can use the phrase é que (literally "is that").
To do this, pull the word or phrase you want to highlight to the very beginning of the sentence, immediately follow it with é que, and then add the rest of the sentence.
| It is your brother who needs the hammer and the tool. | O teu irmão é que precisa do martelo e da ferramenta. |
You can emphasize almost any part of the sentence this way, including the instruments used to get the job done.
| It is with the pliers that you take out the screw. | Com o alicate é que tu tiras o parafuso. |
Emphasizing the Past with foi que
If the event you are highlighting happened in the past, you can match the past tense by using foi que ("it was... that"). This is extremely common when pointing out exactly when an action occurred.
| It was yesterday that the father bought the board and the nail. | Ontem foi que o pai comprou a tábua e o prego. |
é que as a Fixed Particle
Because é que is so common in everyday Portuguese, it often acts as a fixed emphasis tag. This means you will frequently hear native speakers use é que even when the main action is in the past.
| It was yesterday that I drilled the wood with the drill. | Ontem é que eu furei a madeira com o berbequim. |
Subject Agreement
When the element you pull to the front of the sentence is the subject, the main verb that comes after é que must still agree with it. If the emphasized subject is plural, the verb is plural.
| Those screws are the ones that are quite heavy. | Aqueles parafusos é que são bastante pesados. |
Focusing on Locations
You can also use these emphatic structures with prepositional phrases to highlight exactly where you stored your tools or completed a project.
| It was in the box that I kept the little hammer and the tool. | Na caixa foi que eu guardei o martelinho e a ferramenta. |
| It was in the backyard that the child pierced the finger with the nail. | No quintal foi que a criança furou o dedo com o prego. |
