Breakdown of A mãe receava que o professor tivesse repreendido o filho rebelde.
o professor
the teacher (m)
a mãe
the mother
ter
to have
o filho
the son
que
that (conjunction)
recear
to fear
repreender
to reprimand
rebelde
rebellious
Questions & Answers about A mãe receava que o professor tivesse repreendido o filho rebelde.
Why do we use the compound tense tivesse repreendido here instead of just the Imperfect Subjunctive (repreendesse)?
The main verb receava (feared) is in the past tense and expresses emotion, which triggers the subjunctive in the second clause. We use the Past Perfect Subjunctive (tivesse repreendido) because the teacher's reprimand happened before the mother's fear. If she feared he was reprimanding him at that exact same time, we would use the Imperfect Subjunctive (repreendesse).
Could we use the Indicative mood (tinha repreendido) instead, since the reprimand is a completed past action?
No. Even though the reprimand already happened, the main verb receava expresses emotion (fear). Verbs of emotion always demand the subjunctive mood in the following clause, regardless of whether the action is completed or not.
If we used the phrase ter medo (to be afraid) instead of recear, how would the sentence change?
The verb is receava (from recear). Why isn't there an "i" in this conjugation, like in the present tense receia?
Verbs ending in -ear (like recear and passear) only get that extra "i" when the spoken stress falls on the root of the word. This happens in the present tense (like ela receia). In the Imperfect tense (receava), the stress is on the ending, so the root stays regular without the "i".
Learn A mãe receava que o professor tivesse repreendido o filho rebelde and more in Portuguese
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free