Breakdown of Tinham subestimado o alcance de tal modo que o marketing falhou.
ter
to have
falhar
to fail
de tal modo que
in such a way that
subestimar
to underestimate
o alcance
the reach
o marketing
the marketing
Questions & Answers about Tinham subestimado o alcance de tal modo que o marketing falhou.
The current lesson is about fazer com que triggering the subjunctive. Why doesn't de tal modo que trigger the subjunctive here?
Clauses showing cause and effect can be tricky! While fazer com que (to make it so that) emphasizes the cause or force behind an action and requires the subjunctive, de tal modo que (in such a way that) emphasizes a factual result. Because the marketing actually failed in reality, it is stated as a fact using the indicative mood (falhou).
Could de tal modo que ever take the subjunctive?
What is the exact role of de tal modo que here, and can I use other words?
It acts as a consecutive conjunction, linking the intensity of the first action (underestimating) to its inevitable consequence. You could easily swap it with de tal forma que or de tal maneira que. They all mean 'in such a way that' and are perfectly interchangeable here.
Why are there two different past tenses (tinham subestimado and falhou) in this sentence?
This creates a clear chronological timeline. The compound past perfect (tinham subestimado, meaning 'they had underestimated') sets up the background action that occurred further in the past. The simple past (falhou) describes the event that happened afterwards as a direct consequence.
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