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O livro é grosso, mas leio-o depressa.

O livro é grosso, mas leio-o depressa.
The book is thick, but I read it quickly.
From Lesson 250:Fica-te bem (a roupa e as medidas)·Portuguese (Portugal)

Breakdown of O livro é grosso, mas leio-o depressa.

o livro
the book
ler
to read
depressa
quickly, fast
grosso
thick

Questions & Answers about O livro é grosso, mas leio-o depressa.

Doesn't grosso mean "gross" or "rude"?
It can mean "rude" or "crude" when describing a person's behavior, but it does not mean "gross" (disgusting) — that's a false friend! When describing physical objects like books, walls, or sweaters, grosso simply means "thick".
Why does the pronoun come after the verb in leio-o? Shouldn't it be mas o leio?
In European Portuguese, pronouns normally attach to the end of the verb. Certain "magnet words" (like não or que) pull the pronoun before the verb, but the word mas (but) does not act as a magnet here. Because it joins two independent parts of a sentence, the pronoun o stays attached to the end of leio.
Can I use rápido instead of depressa?
Yes, you will often hear native speakers use rápido in this context. While depressa and rapidamente are true adverbs meaning "quickly", rápido is technically an adjective ("fast"). However, it is very commonly used as an adverb in everyday spoken Portuguese.
Why do we use é instead of está to describe the book?
We use é (from the verb ser) because being thick is a permanent, defining physical characteristic of the book. You would only use está (from the verb estar) if the condition was temporary, like a notebook that temporarily swelled up with water.

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