Question 1

Why is it pela instead of just por?

Accepted Answer

pela is a mandatory contraction of the preposition por (along, through, by) and the feminine word for 'the' (a). Since praia (beach) is a feminine noun, we say a praia (the beach). When you put por and a together, they merge into pela.

Question 2

I thought por meant 'for' or 'by'. How does it mean 'along' here?

Accepted Answer

The preposition por is very versatile. When talking about movement and locations, it often describes moving 'through', 'along', or 'around' a place. So passear pela praia naturally translates to 'strolling along the beach'.

Question 3

Is passeamos in the present tense or the past tense?

Accepted Answer

It can be both! For regular verbs ending in '-ar' like passear (to stroll), the nós (we) form is spelled and pronounced exactly the same in the present tense (we stroll) and the simple past tense (we strolled). You have to rely on context to know which one is meant.

Question 4

Is the verb here passar? Why is there an 'e' in passeamos?

Accepted Answer

The verb here is actually passear, which means 'to stroll' or 'to go for a walk'. It is related to passar (to pass), but it is a different verb. That is why it keeps the 'e' in passeamos.

Nós passeamos pela praia.

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