Breakdown of A degradação é grave e tenho medo de que o muro se desmorone.
ser
to be
e
and
ter medo de
to be afraid of
que
that (conjunction)
grave
serious, severe (an illness, a situation)
o muro
the wall
a degradação
the degradation
desmoronar-se
to collapse
Questions & Answers about A degradação é grave e tenho medo de que o muro se desmorone.
Why do we need the preposition de in tenho medo de que? Doesn't que just mean 'that'?
While English simply uses 'afraid that', Portuguese often retains the preposition that a word naturally requires before adding the conjunction que. The base expression is ter medo de (to be afraid of), so when a whole clause follows, we keep the preposition, creating ter medo de que.
Why is the verb desmoronar-se in the subjunctive mood (desmorone)?
Expressions of fear and emotion trigger the subjunctive mood in the subordinate clause that follows them. Because tenho medo de que shows emotional subjectivity, the verb describing the feared event must be in the present subjunctive, hence desmorone instead of the present indicative desmorona.
Why is the wall collapsing translated with the reflexive pronoun se in se desmorone?
Could we attach the pronoun to the end of the verb and write que o muro desmorone-se?
No, in European Portuguese, the conjunction que acts as a 'magnet' word. It forces the pronoun se to move before the verb, which is a grammar rule called proclisis. This is why it must be written as que o muro se desmorone.
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