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Portuguese (Portugal)

### The Never-Ending To-Do List

When doing house renovations, it often feels like the work is never finished. To talk about tasks that are incomplete, pending, or "yet to be done" in Portuguese, we use a simple structure:

**estar** (conjugated) + **por** + *infinitive verb*

Because we are usually talking about the objects receiving the action, **estar** will conjugate to match the item that is waiting to be worked on, while the action itself stays in the infinitive.

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### Still Pending

You will frequently see this structure paired with the word **ainda** (still) to emphasize that an action is *still* waiting to be completed.

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### Checking the Backlog

This pattern is incredibly useful for tracking any backlog of tasks. Whether you are dealing with broken stairs (*degraus*), hardware like a hinge (*dobradiça*), or electrical fixtures like a switch (*interruptor*), just plug the pending action in after **estar por**.

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Pending actions (estar por)

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
the tile	o azulejo
There are many tiles that are yet to be placed in the bathroom.	Há muitos azulejos que estão por colocar na casa de banho.
the plumber	o canalizador
the pipe (tube)	o tubo
The plumber was fixing the pipe, but the tiles are yet to be cleaned.	O canalizador estava a consertar o tubo, mas os azulejos estão por limpar.
The plumber did not arrive today, so the pipe is yet to be repaired.	O canalizador não chegou hoje, portanto o tubo está por arranjar.
the skirting board	o rodapé
to varnish	envernizar
The skirting board is still yet to be varnished.	O rodapé ainda está por envernizar.
I still have to clean the skirting boards that are yet to be varnished.	Ainda tenho de limpar os rodapés que estão por envernizar.
the step (stair)	o degrau
There are two steps that are yet to be repaired on the stairs.	Há dois degraus que estão por arranjar nas escadas.
to glue	colar
He was gluing the wood, but a step is yet to be finished.	Ele estava a colar a madeira, mas um degrau está por acabar.
the hinge	a dobradiça
the handle	o puxador
Are the hinge and the handle still yet to be tightened?	A dobradiça e o puxador ainda estão por apertar?
The door handle is still yet to be chosen.	O puxador da porta ainda está por escolher.
the switch	o interruptor
Since he did not come, the switch is yet to be put in.	Como ele não veio, o interruptor está por colocar.
The switch and the socket are yet to be replaced.	O interruptor e a tomada estão por substituir.
I do not remember if the tiles are yet to be cleaned.	Não me lembro se os azulejos estão por limpar.
The baseboard is yet to be glued and the hinge is yet to be tightened.	O rodapé está por colar e a dobradiça está por apertar.