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Eles ficaram de analisar o romance, por isso estão ocupados.

Eles ficaram de analisar o romance, por isso estão ocupados.
They agreed to analyze the novel, therefore they are busy.
From Lesson 271:Agreeing to do something (ficar de)·Portuguese (Portugal)

Questions & Answers about Eles ficaram de analisar o romance, por isso estão ocupados.

Why does ficaram de analisar mean "agreed to analyze" when ficar normally means "to stay" or "to become"?
The combination of ficar de followed by an infinitive verb (like analisar) is a specific structure that means "to agree to do something" or "to arrange to do something". It shows a commitment was made between people, completely changing the usual meaning of ficar.
Is the word romance a false friend?
Yes! In Portuguese, o romance is the standard word for a "novel" (a full-length fiction book of any genre). While it can also mean a romantic relationship, in the context of reading or analyzing literature, it almost always means "novel".
Why use por isso instead of just saying então?
Both are perfectly fine, but por isso (literally "for that") is the most direct translation for "therefore" or "that is why". It clearly links the cause (agreeing to analyze the book) to the effect (being busy). The word então translates more closely to a casual "so" or "then".
Just as a refresher, why are we using estão instead of são for "they are"?
Because being busy is a temporary condition caused by analyzing the novel, so we use the verb estar (conjugated here as estão). If you used the verb ser (são), saying são ocupados would mean they are inherently busy people all the time as a permanent character trait.

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