Breakdown of Estou a livrar-me da velharia inútil.
estar
to be (temporary / location)
a
to / at (direction)
livrar-se de
to get rid of
a velharia
the old junk
inútil
useless
Questions & Answers about Estou a livrar-me da velharia inútil.
If I wanted to add só to mean I am only getting rid of the useless junk, where does it go?
It depends on what you want to emphasize! To focus on the action itself, you place it before the infinitive: Estou só a livrar-me da velharia inútil. If you want to emphasize that you are getting rid of the junk but keeping the good stuff, you place it right before that phrase: Estou a livrar-me só da velharia inútil.
Why is the pronoun -me attached to the end of livrar?
How does the word velharia get its meaning from velho?
The suffix -aria is often added to nouns or adjectives to mean a collection of or a place full of those things. Since velho means old, velharia refers to a collection of old things, which usually translates to old junk or sometimes antiques.
Why is da used before velharia?
The verb livrar-se (to get rid of) requires the preposition de to introduce the thing you are getting rid of. Because velharia is a feminine noun, the preposition de merges with the feminine definite article a to form da.
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