Getting called for jury duty can be daunting, and sometimes you simply cannot attend. When you need to get out of a commitment or explain a complicated situation, you will often find yourself making excuses. In conversational European Portuguese, there is a specific, highly common structure used to frame a statement as a justification.
The Justification Marker: "É que..."
When you want to explain the underlying reason for a situation or offer an excuse, you can start your sentence with É que....
This phrase acts as a conversational discourse marker. It does not change the grammar of the rest of the sentence; it simply signals to the listener that what follows is an explanation. In English, it translates closely to "The thing is..." or "It's just that...".
| The thing is I didn't receive the summons, otherwise I would attend. | É que não recebi a convocatória, senão comparecia. |
| The thing is I cannot judge the defendant in this trial. | É que eu não posso julgar o réu neste julgamento. |
Because this marker is used to justify an action (or inaction), you will frequently hear it used alongside apologies, requests to be excused, or when presenting proof like a medical certificate.
| The thing is I brought a medical certificate so that it serves as a justification. | É que eu trouxe um atestado para que sirva de justificação. |
| It's just that I have a lot of prejudice and would not be impartial. | É que eu tenho muito preconceito e não seria imparcial. |
Punctuation with "É que..."
Notice that é que generally flows directly into the subject or verb of the sentence without a comma.
| It's just that I do not have another justification to miss the trial. | É que eu não tenho outra justificação para faltar ao julgamento. |
However, if é que is immediately followed by a separate subordinate clause—such as a conditional "if" statement (se...)—you will use commas to set off that inserted clause.
| The thing is, if I attended, I would lose my job. | É que, se eu comparecesse, perderia o meu trabalho. |