Word
O universo enviar-te-á uma mensagem espiritual.
Meaning
The universe will send you a spiritual message.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of O universo enviar-te-á uma mensagem espiritual.
um
a / an / some (all forms)
enviar
to send
a mensagem
the message
te
you (informal object)
Questions & Answers about O universo enviar-te-á uma mensagem espiritual.
What is happening with the word enviar-te-á?
This is called mesoclisis. When a verb is in the future tense, the pronoun goes inside the verb instead of before or after it. To build it, you take the infinitive (enviar), insert the pronoun (te), and then add the future ending (á). Together, it means "will send you".
Why do we have to put the pronoun in the middle here? Couldn't we just say "O universo te enviará"?
In European Portuguese, a pronoun can only go before the verb if there is a "magnet word" (like a negative word or a relative pronoun) pulling it there. Since O universo is just a normal subject, it doesn't pull the pronoun. Normally, we would attach the pronoun to the end of the verb, but grammar rules forbid putting pronouns at the very end of future tense verbs. So, the pronoun gets trapped in the middle!
Why is it uma mensagem? Doesn't the consonant ending mean it should be masculine?
Why doesn't the adjective espiritual have a feminine ending to match mensagem?