Options and Alternatives: Seja... Seja
When discussing flexible choices, you will often want to say "whether it is this or that." In Portuguese, we express these alternatives using seja... seja.
| whether (in seja... seja) | seja |
Literally "be it... be it," this structure uses the third-person singular present subjunctive of ser. It sets up two possible conditions, emphasizing that the outcome is the same either way.
| Whether it is vegan or vegetarian, the dish is nutritious. | Seja vegano, seja vegetariano, o prato é nutritivo. |
| Whether it is fish or meat, the protein is nutritious. | Seja peixe, seja carne, a proteína é nutritiva. |
| Whether it is with gluten or with dairy products, I eat everything. | Seja com glúten, seja com laticínios, eu como tudo. |
Discussing Dietary Habits
When talking about nutrition, a useful verb is ingerir (to ingest or consume).
| to ingest | ingerir |
In the present indicative, the first-person singular changes the "g" to a "j" (eu ingiro) to keep the soft "j" sound.
| Do you ingest dairy products every day? — I do. | Ingeres laticínios todos os dias? — Ingiro. |
Because ingerir is an -ir verb, its present subjunctive forms use an "a" (ingira, ingiras, etc.). You will see this triggered by phrases expressing necessity (é preciso que) or concessions (por mais que).
| It is necessary that you ingest all the nutrients. | É preciso que tu ingiras todos os nutrientes. |
| However much you ingest vitamins, you lack other nutrients. | Por mais que ingiras vitaminas, faltam-te outros nutrientes. |
Finally, we can combine vocabulary for restrictions with the seja... seja structure to discuss any type of diet:
| Whether the diet is restricted or free, it must be nutritious. | Seja a dieta restrita, seja livre, tem de ser nutritiva. |