Word
O agente secreto fala como se a missão fosse simples.
Meaning
The secret agent speaks as if the mission were simple.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of O agente secreto fala como se a missão fosse simples.
ser
to be
falar
to speak
simples
simple
como se
as if
Questions & Answers about O agente secreto fala como se a missão fosse simples.
Why do we use fosse instead of é or era here?
The phrase como se means 'as if'. Because it sets up a hypothetical or unreal situation, Portuguese always requires the imperfect subjunctive tense right after it. That is why we use fosse (the imperfect subjunctive of ser) instead of a normal indicative tense like é or era.
Why is it fosse (from ser) and not estivesse (from estar) for 'were simple'?
We use ser when talking about inherent characteristics. A mission being 'simple' is treated as a core quality of that specific mission, rather than a temporary condition, so we use fosse instead of estivesse.
Why does the sentence mix the present tense (fala) with a past subjunctive (fosse)?
This is standard for como se clauses. Even though the agent is speaking right now in the present (fala), the imaginary scenario we are comparing it to uses the imperfect subjunctive (fosse). Notice that English does the exact same thing: 'he speaks' (present) 'as if it were' (past).
Is the word agente always masculine?