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Portuguese (Portugal)

When discussing legal documents, disputes, or intellectual property, you will often need to explain what a situation is about. In Portuguese, we use the formal impersonal construction **tratar-se de** to mean "it is a matter of" or "it concerns".

### The Impersonal "Tratar-se de"

Because it is an impersonal expression, **tratar-se de** is always conjugated in the third-person singular. In simple affirmative sentences, the pronoun **se** attaches to the end of the verb with a hyphen.

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Keep in mind that the preposition **de** will contract with definite and indefinite articles that follow it, just as it does with other verbs (e.g., *de* + *a* = **da**).

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### Pronoun Placement with "Não" and "Que"

Like other pronouns in Portuguese, the word **se** gets pulled in front of the verb by certain "magnet" words.
- After negative words like **não** (not), use **não se trata de**.
- After conjunctions like **que** (that), use **que se trata de**.

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### Legal Disputes and Different Tenses

You can use this construction alongside formal legal vocabulary like **o litígio** (the dispute) and **a indemnização** (the compensation). 

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It can also be conjugated in other tenses, such as the past tense (**tratou-se de**), while remaining in the third-person singular.

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It is a matter of (tratar-se de)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prefix

prep

preposition

pron

pronoun

sentence

verb

Demonstratives and the verb to be (isto é, o, a)

Subject pronouns and negation (eu, não)

Yes/no questions and question words (quem, o que)

Plural pronouns, articles, and verbs (somos, são, os, as)

Origin and possession (de, do, da)

Introductions (chamar-se)

Indefinite articles (um, uma, uns, umas)

The verb to be for locations (estar)

Contrasting the two verbs to be (ser vs. estar)

Preposition for locations (em, no, na)

Numbers 0 to 10 (zero, um, dois)

The verb to have (tenho, tem)

Regular -ar verbs (falar, trabalhar)

Regular -er verbs (comer, beber)

Regular -ir verbs (abrir, partir)

My, your, and our (o meu, a nossa)

His, hers, and theirs (dele, dela)

Adjective agreement and placement

Days of the week (segunda-feira)

Months of the year (janeiro)

Counting by tens to 100 (trinta, quarenta...)

Telling time (é uma, são...)

Asking about time (quando, a que horas)

The verb to go (ir)

Prepositions of direction (a, para)

Preposition a contractions (ao, à, aos, às)

Prepositions of place (ao lado de, em frente de...)

Demonstratives (este, esse, aquele)

Contractions with demonstratives (neste, desse, daquele)

Asking which and how many (qual, quanto)

Plurals ending in -ão (-ões, -ãos, -ães)

Plurals ending in consonants (-ns, -is, -es)

The verb to like (gostar de)

The verb to need (precisar de)

The verb to want (querer)

The verb can or may (poder)

Expressing obligation (ter de)

Adverbs of degree (muito, pouco)

Quantifiers (muito, pouco)

Comparatives (mais... do que, menos... do que)

Equality comparisons (tão... como)

The preposition com (comigo, contigo)

Coordinating conjunctions (e, mas, ou, porque)

The preposition por (pelo, pela)

Double negation (nunca, nada, ninguém)

Present continuous (estar a)

Near future (ir)

Past tense of regular -ar verbs

Past tense of regular -er and -ir verbs

Past tense of ser and ir (fui, foi)

Direct object pronouns (me, te, o, a, nos, os, as)

Pronoun placement with negatives and questions

Greetings and courtesy (bom dia, obrigado)

Physical states with ter (ter fome, ter frio)

Asking the way (à direita, sempre em frente)

Colours (vermelho, amarelo, cor-de-rosa)

Money and shopping (custar, a moeda)

Getting around (o motorista, a paragem de autocarro)

Weather and seasons (faz calor, o inverno)

Omitting the subject pronoun

Where things are: ficar (Onde fica...?)

Richer questions: que + noun and é que

Numbers above 100 (cento e vinte, mil)

First-person sound changes (durmo, prefiro)

Advice and ability: dever and saber

Asking why: porquê and porque

When one thing happens: quando-clauses

Here and there: aqui, aí, ali (cá e lá)

Formal and plural possessives: o seu, o vosso

Irregular presents: ver, vir, dar

Present irregulars

Reflexive verbs (me, te, se, nos)

Stem-changing reflexives

Attached object pronouns (-lo, -la, -los, -las)

Nasal attached pronouns (-no, -na, -nos, -nas)

Pronoun placement with adverbs

Past tense of fazer, dizer, and trazer

Past tense of ter, estar, poder, and saber

Past tense of querer and vir

Past tense of ver, dar, and ler

Past tense reflexive verbs (-se)

Time elapsed in the past (há)

Question	Answer
to be a matter of / to concern	tratar-se de
intellectual	intelectual
It is a matter of intellectual property.	Trata-se de propriedade intelectual.
the patent	a patente
judicial	judicial
The patent is not a judicial document.	A patente não é um documento judicial.
the violation	a violação
The company states that it is a matter of a violation.	A empresa afirma que se trata de uma violação.
the plagiarism	o plágio
It is obvious that it concerns plagiarism.	É óbvio que se trata de plágio.
commercial	comercial
It is not a matter of a commercial secret.	Não se trata de um segredo comercial.
the dispute	o litígio
Therefore, there is no judicial dispute at all.	Portanto, não há litígio judicial nenhum.
the compensation	a indemnização
In this dispute, it is a matter of a huge compensation.	Neste litígio, trata-se de uma indemnização enorme.
to claim (a right or responsibility)	reivindicar
It is a matter of the intellectual property that the author claims.	Trata-se da propriedade intelectual que o autor reivindica.
The inventor claims a compensation for the patent.	O inventor reivindica uma indemnização pela patente.
The author claims that there was plagiarism and a violation.	O autor reivindica que houve plágio e uma violação.
The commercial brand got registered and there is no compensation.	A marca comercial ficou registada e não há indemnização.
In that meeting, it was a matter of a commercial agreement.	Naquela reunião, tratou-se de um acordo comercial.
It is not a matter of any plagiarism.	Não se trata de plágio nenhum.