Question 1

Why does the Portuguese sentence use tem (has) instead of a word for "is"?

Accepted Answer

In Portuguese, you don't "be" an age; you "have" years of age. Instead of saying the boy "is" thirteen, you say he "has" thirteen years (tem treze anos). Using the irregular verb ter (to have) to talk about age is one of its most important uses!

Question 2

I've also seen the word têm with a little hat on the 'e'. Why is it tem here?

Accepted Answer

Tem (no accent) is the third-person singular form, used for one person or thing, like ele (he) or o rapaz (the boy). The version with the circumflex accent, têm, is the plural form used for "they", like eles or os rapazes (the boys).

Question 3

I learned that "boy" is menino. Why use rapaz here?

Accepted Answer

While both mean "boy", a menino is usually a younger child or toddler. A rapaz refers to an older boy, a teenager, or a young man. Since the boy in this sentence is thirteen, rapaz is the most natural choice.

Question 4

How do I pronounce the 's' at the end of anos?

Accepted Answer

In European Portuguese, an 's' at the very end of a sentence makes a "sh" sound. So, anos here is pronounced a bit like "ah-noosh".

O rapaz tem treze anos.

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