Breakdown of O fóssil é frágil, no entanto, temos a paciência para o estudar.
ser
to be
ter
to have
estudar
to study
para
to / for
a paciência
the patience
o
him/it (m)
frágil
fragile
no entanto
however
o fóssil
the fossil
Questions & Answers about O fóssil é frágil, no entanto, temos a paciência para o estudar.
Since the subject is 'we' (temos), shouldn't we use the personal infinitive estudarmos instead of the impersonal estudar?
You absolutely can say para o estudarmos, and it is perfectly correct! However, when the subject of the main clause and the infinitive clause is exactly the same ('we'), Portuguese speakers often use the regular (impersonal) infinitive to avoid redundancy. Both options are very natural here.
Why is the pronoun o placed before the verb (para o estudar) instead of attached to the end (para estudá-lo)?
In strictly formal European Portuguese, attaching the pronoun to the end (para estudá-lo) is the traditional rule when an infinitive follows a preposition like para. However, placing the pronoun before the verb (para o estudar) is extremely common, widely accepted, and often sounds more natural in modern spoken Portuguese.
The current lesson is about using até + infinitive. Could we use até instead of para in this sentence?
No, because they express entirely different relationships. Até introduces a temporal limit ('until'), whereas para introduces purpose ('in order to'). If you used até, the phrase até o estudar would mean 'until we study it', which doesn't make sense with 'having the patience'. The sentence requires para to mean 'patience to (in order to) study it'.
Is no entanto the only way to say 'however' here?
Not at all. No entanto is very common, but at the B2 level, you should also be comfortable using its synonyms like contudo or porém. They all mean 'however' or 'nevertheless' and can be used interchangeably in this context.
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