Breakdown of Como gosta de pescar, o rapaz sentou-se na margem.
o rapaz
the boy
em
in / on / at
gostar de
to like
sentar-se
to sit down
Questions & Answers about Como gosta de pescar, o rapaz sentou-se na margem.
Why does como mean "since" here instead of "how"?
At the beginning of a sentence, como is frequently used as a conjunction meaning "since" or "because" to explain the cause of an action. You can think of it as setting the scene: "Given the fact that he likes to fish..."
This lesson is about the gerund, but there isn't one in this sentence. How does it fit the lesson?
Great catch! This sentence doesn't use a gerund, but it contains a clause (Como gosta de pescar) that could be perfectly replaced by an adverbial gerund. You could rewrite this as: Gostando de pescar, o rapaz sentou-se na margem. The gerund gostando (liking) expresses the reason for his action just as effectively as the conjunction como does here.
Why is the pronoun at the end in sentou-se instead of before the verb (se sentou)?
In European Portuguese, pronouns usually attach to the end of the verb with a hyphen in affirmative main clauses. Because o rapaz sentou-se is an affirmative statement without any "magnet" words (like não, já, or que) directly before the verb to pull the pronoun to the front, the pronoun naturally stays at the end.
Is margem related to the English word "margin"?