Breakdown of Foi o influenciador quem fez com que o patrocínio funcionasse.
ser
to be
quem
who
fazer com que
to make (someone do), to bring about
funcionar
to work, to function
o influenciador
the influencer
o patrocínio
the sponsorship
Questions & Answers about Foi o influenciador quem fez com que o patrocínio funcionasse.
Why is funcionasse in the imperfect subjunctive?
The phrase fazer com que (to make it so that / to cause) always triggers the subjunctive because it expresses influence over an outcome. Since the main verb fez is in the past tense, the dependent verb must match it in time, which gives us the imperfect subjunctive funcionasse.
Could I just say fez o patrocínio funcionar instead of using com que?
Yes, using fazer directly followed by the personal infinitive is perfectly grammatically correct. However, using fazer com que + subjunctive is a very natural way for native speakers to emphasize the indirect causation or effort involved—meaning the influencer created the right conditions for the sponsorship to succeed.
Why does the sentence start with Foi?
This is an emphatic structure, similar to a cleft sentence in English. By saying Foi o influenciador quem... (It was the influencer who...), you are putting a strong spotlight on the influencer, emphasizing that they, and nobody else, were the reason it worked.
Could I use que instead of quem after o influenciador?
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