Log inSign up

Nós vamos ao rio, mas não é tão bonito como a floresta.

Nós vamos ao rio, mas não é tão bonito como a floresta.
We are going to the river, but it is not as beautiful as the forest.
From Lesson 54:Equality comparisons (tão... como)·Portuguese (Portugal)

Questions & Answers about Nós vamos ao rio, mas não é tão bonito como a floresta.

How does the comparison tão... como work in this sentence?
It translates directly to "as... as". To say two things are equal, you use tão + adjective + como. In this sentence, we add não to the beginning to make it negative: não é tão bonito como means "it is not as beautiful as".
Why do we use the masculine word bonito if we are comparing it to a floresta, which is feminine?
The adjective always matches the gender of the noun it is describing. Here, the thing being described as beautiful (or not) is the river (o rio), which is masculine. The forest is just the thing we are comparing it to, so it doesn't change the gender of bonito.
Why does the sentence use ao rio instead of just a rio?
The verb ir (to go) requires the preposition a (to). Because rio is a masculine noun, it also needs the definite article o (the). In Portuguese, a and o always merge into the contraction ao (to the).
Why is there no word for "it" before não é?
Portuguese frequently drops subject pronouns like "he", "she", or "it" when the context makes it obvious. Since the first half of the sentence just introduced o rio, the verb form é (is) is enough for a listener to know we mean "it is".

Learn Nós vamos ao rio, mas não é tão bonito como a floresta and more in Portuguese

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning Portuguese →