Indefinite articles
When you refer to non-specific items ("a", "an", or "some"), use an indefinite article. Just like definite articles, they must agree with the noun's gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural).
| Masculine | Feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular ("a / an") | um | uma |
| Plural ("some") | uns | umas |
You will often use the verb ter (to have) to introduce objects you own.
| I have a book and a pen. | Eu tenho um livro e uma caneta. |
| You have a notebook here. | Tu tens um caderno aqui. |
Pointing out existence with "haver"
To introduce a new object into a conversation or state that something exists, use the form há (from the verb haver). It translates to both "there is" and "there are" and never changes form.
| There is a big dog there. | Há ali um cão grande. |
Watch out for nouns like o problema. Even though it ends in "-a" (which is typically a feminine ending), it is a masculine noun. Therefore, it always takes the masculine article um.
| Is there a problem? | Há um problema? |
Plurals: using "uns" and "umas"
In English, we often drop the article entirely when speaking in the plural (e.g., "They are new friends"). In Portuguese, it is very common to use the plural indefinite articles uns and umas (meaning "some").
| They (m) are some new friends. | Eles são uns amigos novos. |
| The girls have some big pens. | As raparigas têm umas canetas grandes. |
Remember that há remains the same whether it points to a single item or a plural group.
| There are some new notebooks there. | Há ali uns cadernos novos. |