Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Quanto mais exigente é o cliente, mais cansaço sinto. - The more demanding the client is, the more tiredness I feel.

Quanto mais exigente é o cliente, mais cansaço sinto.

The more demanding the client is, the more tiredness I feel.

Breakdown of Quanto mais exigente é o cliente, mais cansaço sinto.

Questions & Answers about Quanto mais exigente é o cliente, mais cansaço sinto.

Why does the sentence use Quanto mais in the first half but only mais in the second half?

In Portuguese proportional comparisons, the first part sets the condition with quanto mais (or quanto menos), meaning 'the more/less'. The second part gives the result using only mais (or menos). Unlike English, which repeats 'the' in both halves, Portuguese drops the quanto in the second clause.

Is it mandatory to say é o cliente instead of o cliente é?

It is not strictly mandatory, but é o cliente sounds much more natural. In Portuguese, it is very common to put the verb before the subject in dependent clauses like this, especially when the adjective (exigente) has been pulled to the front of the phrase.

Would quanto ever change to match a feminine or plural word in a sentence like this?

Not in this specific sentence. Here, quanto is acting as an adverb modifying the adjective exigente, so it never changes form. However, if quanto mais is followed directly by a noun, it does change to agree with it (for example, quantas mais pessoas for 'the more people').

Could I say mais cansado fico instead of mais cansaço sinto?