Learn Portuguese (Portugal): O contrato acabou; por conseguinte, saímos do escritório. - The contract ended; consequently, we left the office.

O contrato acabou; por conseguinte, saímos do escritório.

The contract ended; consequently, we left the office.

Breakdown of O contrato acabou; por conseguinte, saímos do escritório.

Questions & Answers about O contrato acabou; por conseguinte, saímos do escritório.

What does por conseguinte mean, and how formal is it?

Por conseguinte translates to "consequently" or "therefore". It is a formal connector that you will mostly encounter in writing, professional settings, or the news. In everyday spoken Portuguese, you would be much more likely to hear portanto or por isso.

Could saímos be in the present tense here?

The word saímos is spelled and pronounced exactly the same in both the present tense ("we leave") and the simple past tense ("we left"). We know it is the past tense in this specific sentence because the first clause establishes a past context with acabou (ended).

Why is there a semicolon before por conseguinte?

In Portuguese, when you use a transitional phrase like por conseguinte, no entanto (however), or ou seja (in other words) to connect two independent but related clauses, it is standard punctuation to put a semicolon before the transition and a comma after it.

Could I use terminou instead of acabou for a contract ending?

Yes, terminou is an excellent alternative here. While acabou is very common and perfectly correct, terminou sounds slightly more formal, which pairs well with the formal connector por conseguinte and the business context of a contract.