Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Onde estão os livros?

Onde estão os livros?

Where are the books?

Breakdown of Onde estão os livros?

o livro

the book

estar

to be (temporary / location)

onde

where

Elon.io is an online learning platform

We have an entire course teaching Portuguese (Portugal) grammar and vocabulary.

Start learning Portuguese (Portugal) now

Questions & Answers about Onde estão os livros?

Why do we use estão instead of the other Portuguese verb for 'to be'?

Estão comes from the verb estar, which is used for temporary states and locations. Because we are asking about the physical location of the books right now, we must use estar. We use the specific form estão because it matches the plural subject os livros (they).

How do you pronounce the -ão ending in estão?

The tilde (the squiggly line over the 'a') tells you it is a nasal sound. It sounds a bit like the English word 'ow', but spoken through your nose. Imagine saying the 'ound' in 'sound' without fully pronouncing the 'n' or 'd' at the end.

Is it okay to say Onde os livros estão? instead?

While people will completely understand you, it sounds less natural. In Portuguese questions that start with a question word like Onde (where), the verb usually comes right after that word, flipping the order to verb-subject: Onde estão os livros?

Why do we need os before livros?

Os means 'the' for masculine plural words. In Portuguese, it is standard to include the definite article before the noun when talking about specific things, just like in the English translation 'Where are the books?'.