Breakdown of Ao escavarem aqui, os arqueólogos respiram muita poeira.
muito
much / very
aqui
here
respirar
to breathe
ao
upon / when (doing something)
escavar
to excavate
o arqueólogo
the archaeologist
a poeira
the dust (dirt, earth)
Questions & Answers about Ao escavarem aqui, os arqueólogos respiram muita poeira.
Why is it escavarem instead of just the regular infinitive escavar?
Because the action is being done by os arqueólogos (a plural subject). In Portuguese, when an infinitive has a specific subject, we often use the Personal Infinitive, conjugating it to match. Here, we add the -em ending to match the "they" form.
How exactly does ao work here?
Ao followed by an infinitive is a very common way to say "when doing" or "upon doing" something. In this sentence, ao escavarem translates smoothly to "when excavating" or "upon excavating".
Could I just use quando instead of ao?
Yes! You could say Quando escavam aqui, os arqueólogos respiram muita poeira. Using ao + personal infinitive means exactly the same thing, but it sounds a bit more concise and elegant.
Is there a difference between poeira and pó for "dust"?
They are very similar, but poeira usually refers to a cloud of dust in the air (like from an excavation site or a dirt road), while pó is often the fine dust that settles on surfaces inside a house.
Learn Ao escavarem aqui, os arqueólogos respiram muita poeira and more in Portuguese
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free