Breakdown of Não que ela ambicione muito dinheiro.
não
not / no
ela
she
muito
much / very
o dinheiro
the money
que
that (conjunction)
ambicionar
to aspire to
Questions & Answers about Não que ela ambicione muito dinheiro.
Why do we use the subjunctive ambicione instead of the indicative ambiciona?
The phrase starts with Não que ("Not that"), which is used to shoot down an assumption or a potential reason. Because you are explicitly stating that this is not the actual reality or cause, Portuguese requires the subjunctive. Since we are talking about her current attitude, we use the present subjunctive, ambicione.
The English translation says "aspires to". Why isn't there a preposition like a or por after ambicione?
The Portuguese verb ambicionar is transitive, meaning it connects directly to its object without a preposition. While in English you "aspire to something", in Portuguese you simply "aspire something" (ambicionar muito dinheiro).
Could I drop the pronoun ela here since Portuguese often drops subject pronouns?
You could drop it if the context is completely clear, but keeping ela is very helpful here. The present subjunctive form ambicione is identical for the first person (eu) and the third person (ele, ela, você). Including ela immediately prevents any confusion about who you are talking about.
What nuance does ambicionar add compared to a simpler verb like querer (to want)?
ambicionar implies a stronger, often more long-term striving for success, wealth, or power—literally "to have ambition for." It paints a picture of someone chasing wealth as a life goal, rather than just wanting a bit of extra cash.
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