Breakdown of Ele tem uma desculpa ou um problema?
ele
he
ter
to have
um
a / an / some (all forms)
o problema
the problem
Questions & Answers about Ele tem uma desculpa ou um problema?
How does the conjunction ou work in this sentence?
The word ou simply means 'or'. Just like in English, you use it to present a choice or alternative between two things. Here it connects the two options he might have: uma desculpa and um problema.
Why is there no word for 'Does' at the beginning of the Portuguese sentence?
In Portuguese, you don't use extra helping words like 'do' or 'does' to ask a question. You just use the regular statement word order (Ele tem means 'He has') and raise your voice's pitch at the end of the sentence to show that you are asking something.
Since problema ends in an 'a', why does it use the masculine word um instead of uma?
I've heard people say desculpa to mean 'sorry'. Does it also mean 'excuse'?
Yes! When used as a noun, uma desculpa means 'an excuse'. When you bump into someone or want to apologize, you can say Desculpa! which literally means 'Excuse me!' or 'Sorry!'.