Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Aquela descoberta abriu uma nova era.

Aquela descoberta abriu uma nova era.

That discovery opened a new era.

Breakdown of Aquela descoberta abriu uma nova era.

that over there (+ noun)

a descoberta

the discovery

Questions & Answers about Aquela descoberta abriu uma nova era.

Why is the adjective nova placed before the noun era here instead of after it?

While most adjectives in Portuguese follow the noun, some common ones like novo, velho, and bom frequently come before it. When placed before the noun, novo often carries a more figurative, subjective, or conceptual meaning (like a new era or new phase). If placed after, it usually implies something is physically brand new from a factory, like um carro novo (a brand-new car).

I'm used to seeing era as the past tense of ser (to be). Is that what is happening here?

No, this is a homonym. In this sentence, era is a feminine noun meaning an era, age, or epoch. You can easily tell because it is introduced by the article and adjective uma nova. The verb form era (meaning I was or he/she/it was) is the imperfect past tense of ser.

Could I use essa instead of aquela to say 'That discovery'?

Grammatically yes, but aquela is the most natural fit here. In Portuguese, essa refers to something conceptually close to the listener or just mentioned in conversation, while aquela refers to something distant in time or space from both speakers. Because a discovery that 'opened a new era' is likely a historical event far back in the past, aquela perfectly captures that feeling of temporal distance.