Routine Habits on Days of the Week
To express that a routine happens on certain days of the week, use the preposition a contracted with the plural definite articles os or as:
- a
- os = aos (for masculine days: sábados, domingos)
- a
- as = às (for feminine weekdays: segundas-feiras to sextas-feiras)
| We inspect the house on Saturdays to avoid pests. | Inspecionamos a casa aos sábados para evitar pragas. |
| On Mondays, I usually kill insects in the garden. | Às segundas-feiras, costumo matar insetos no jardim. |
Talking About Weekends
Use the masculine plural contraction aos to describe routines that happen "on weekends" (aos fins de semana).
| The worker inspects the pipes on weekends. | O operário inspeciona os canos aos fins de semana. |
Expressing Exact Times
To say an action happens "at" a specific time, always use the feminine plural contraction às (since the Portuguese word for hours, horas, is feminine).
| I usually see cockroaches in the bathroom at two in the morning. | Costumo ver baratas na casa de banho às duas da manhã. |
| The mosquitoes enter through the window at eight in the evening. | Os mosquitos entram pela janela às oito da noite. |
Recent Actions with "Acabar de"
To say you "have just" done something, use the present tense of acabar followed by the preposition de and an infinitive.
| I have just sprayed the garden against the pests. | Acabo de pulverizar o jardim contra as pragas. |
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