Question 1

Since the translation is "Cut", why is the verb corta and not corte?

Accepted Answer

Corta is the affirmative informal command (the tu form) for the verb cortar. In Portuguese, to tell someone you address as tu to do something, you use the exact same form as the "he/she/it" present tense. If you were giving a formal command (using você), you would say corte.

Question 2

Could this sentence also mean "He cuts a thin slice of cheese"?

Accepted Answer

Yes! Because Portuguese often drops the subject pronoun, corta without any context can simply be the present tense meaning "he cuts", "she cuts", or "it cuts". In real life, you would rely on the context of the conversation or the speaker's tone of voice to know whether it's a statement or an instruction.

Question 3

Why do we say de queijo instead of do queijo here?

Accepted Answer

We use the plain preposition de (of) because we are describing the type or material of the slice in a general sense—it's a "cheese slice". If you used do (which combines de + o to mean "of the"), uma fatia fina do queijo would mean a thin slice of one specific, previously mentioned block of cheese.

Question 4

I've learned the word pedaço for "piece". Is fatia used differently?

Accepted Answer

Yes, fatia specifically means a "slice". You use it for things that are cut into flat, relatively thin portions, like bread, pizza, cake, or cheese. A pedaço is a general "piece" or "chunk" of any shape or size.

Corta uma fatia fina de queijo.

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