Breakdown of Tem cuidado com esse caixote desajeitado, que vais riscar o chão!
ter
to have
com
with
ir
to go
esse
that (esse, essa, esses, essas)
o cuidado
the care
o chão
the floor
o caixote
the moving box
que
because (justification)
desajeitado
awkward (clumsy)
riscar
to scratch
Questions & Answers about Tem cuidado com esse caixote desajeitado, que vais riscar o chão!
Why is que used here instead of porque?
This is the explicative que (also called causal que). In everyday spoken Portuguese, it is very common to use que instead of porque to give a quick, immediate justification, especially right after a command or strong warning like Tem cuidado. In English, it translates naturally as "because" or "or else".
The translation implies "you" (informal), but the verb is tem instead of tens. Why?
Tem is the affirmative imperative (command) form for tu. To form the affirmative imperative for tu, you drop the -s from the present tense form (tu tens becomes tem). If you were giving this warning formally to a você, it would be tenha cuidado.
Why use esse instead of aquele for "that" box?
Esse is specifically used for something near the listener. Since the speaker is telling the person to be careful with the box they are currently holding or standing right next to, esse is the only natural choice. If the box were far away from both the speaker and the listener, they would use aquele.
Does desajeitado usually mean "clumsy" when talking about a person?
Yes! When applied to a person, desajeitado means clumsy, awkward, or uncoordinated. When applied to a physical object like a caixote (crate or box), it means the object is cumbersome, badly shaped, or awkward to hold and carry.
Could I use arranhar instead of riscar for "to scratch" the floor?
Both verbs mean "to scratch," but they are used slightly differently. Riscar comes from the word for a line or streak (risco) and implies leaving a visible mark or groove on a hard surface, like a floor or a car's paint. Arranhar is typically used for scratching skin (like a cat scratch) or superficially scraping something. For damaging a floor with a heavy box, riscar is the standard verb.
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