Breakdown of Deduzir a resposta da charada foi péssimo.
ser
to be
de
of / from / by (means of transport) / wearing (attire)
a
to / at (direction)
péssimo
awful
a resposta
the answer
deduzir
to deduce
a charada
the riddle
Questions & Answers about Deduzir a resposta da charada foi péssimo.
What does péssimo mean here, and how does it relate to mau?
péssimo is the irregular absolute superlative of mau (bad). Instead of saying muito mau (very bad), Portuguese often uses péssimo to express something that is exceptionally bad, terrible, or awful. It elevates the intensity of the adjective without needing an adverb like muito.
Both resposta and charada are feminine nouns. Why is the adjective péssimo in the masculine singular form?
The English translation says 'answer to the riddle'. Why does the Portuguese use da instead of à?
In English, we often say the answer to a question or a riddle. In Portuguese, possession is used instead. You refer to the answer of the riddle, so it becomes a resposta da charada (combining the preposition de with the feminine article a).
Why use foi (from ser) instead of esteve (from estar) to describe how the experience felt?
When evaluating an event, an action, or a fact as an abstract concept, Portuguese typically uses ser. The speaker is categorizing the entire act of deducing the riddle as a definitively terrible thing, rather than describing a temporary physical or emotional state.
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