Breakdown of O trabalho presencial melhora a interação. O teletrabalho, por sua vez, aumenta a produtividade.
o trabalho
the work / the job
a
to / at (direction)
o
him/it (m)
melhorar
to improve
aumentar
to increase
a produtividade
the productivity
presencial
in-person
a interação
the interaction
o teletrabalho
the telework
por sua vez
in turn
Questions & Answers about O trabalho presencial melhora a interação. O teletrabalho, por sua vez, aumenta a produtividade.
Why use por sua vez here instead of a simple mas (but)?
While mas simply introduces a contrast, por sua vez (in turn / for its part) is a more advanced discourse connector that specifically compares two different subjects and their respective traits. Here, it elegantly contrasts the benefit of o trabalho presencial with the distinct benefit of o teletrabalho.
Does por sua vez always have to go in the middle of the sentence between commas?
No, but placing it there is very common and sounds highly natural. You could also put it at the beginning of the second sentence: Por sua vez, o teletrabalho aumenta a produtividade. Placing it right after the subject (O teletrabalho, por sua vez, ...) highlights the direct contrast between the two types of work.
I usually see vez translated as "time" (like uma vez). How does it mean "turn" here?
Vez can mean "time" (as in occurrences), but it also means "turn" (as in taking turns). You see this in everyday phrases like é a minha vez (it's my turn). In the fixed expression por sua vez, it literally translates to "by its turn," functioning just like the English "in turn" or "for its part."
In English we just say "In-person work" and "Telework" in this context. Why do we need the article O in front of them here?
In Portuguese, definite articles (o, a, os, as) are generally required before nouns when speaking about them in a broad, universal sense. Because this sentence states a general fact about these work models, the definite articles are needed before all the nouns here, including a interação and a produtividade.
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