Word
Não dá para pendurar o casaco no cabide.
Meaning
It is not possible to hang the coat on the hanger.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Não dá para pendurar o casaco no cabide.
não
not / no
em
in / on / at
o casaco
the coat
dar para
to be possible to
Questions & Answers about Não dá para pendurar o casaco no cabide.
Why does the verb dar (to give) mean "it is not possible" here?
While dar literally means "to give", the fixed expression dar para followed by an infinitive (like pendurar) is an impersonal structure used to say that something is possible or doable. By making it negative (Não dá para), it translates naturally to "It is not possible to" or "You can't".
If we were hanging multiple coats, would dá change to the plural dão?
Could I just say "Não é possível pendurar" instead of "Não dá para pendurar"?
Yes, you absolutely could. Não é possível is grammatically correct and means the exact same thing. However, não dá para is highly idiomatic and is what you will hear native Portuguese speakers use most often in everyday conversation.
Why is "on the hanger" translated as no cabide instead of using a word for "on top of"?