Breakdown of O médico devia considerar o tratamento indispensável.
o médico
the doctor (m)
dever
should / ought to
o tratamento
the treatment
considerar
to consider
indispensável
indispensable
Questions & Answers about O médico devia considerar o tratamento indispensável.
What role is indispensável playing in this sentence?
It acts as the object complement (what Portuguese grammar calls the predicativo do complemento direto). Verbs of opinion like considerar, achar, and julgar link a direct object (o tratamento) directly to an adjective or noun that describes it (indispensável).
Why is the imperfect tense devia used here instead of the conditional deveria for 'should'?
In European Portuguese, the imperfect tense is very often used instead of the conditional to express advice, expectations, or politeness (like 'should' or 'ought to'). While deveria is also completely correct and a bit more formal, devia is what you will hear most often in everyday speech.
Does the adjective indispensável have to agree with the object it describes?
Yes. Because it functions as an object complement, it must match the gender and number of the direct object. If the sentence were about plural treatments, it would be considerar os tratamentos indispensáveis, because adjectives ending in -vel change to -veis in the plural.
Can I change the word order to considerar indispensável o tratamento?
In everyday Portuguese, you should stick to the order shown here: Verb + Direct Object + Object Complement. Putting the complement before the object in this specific structure is sometimes seen in writing, but it sounds very literary and unnatural for everyday speech.
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