Breakdown of A mãe não diz nada com uma voz cansada.
não
not / no
a mãe
the mother
um
a / an / some (all forms)
cansado
tired
com
with
nada
nothing / anything
dizer
to say
a voz
the voice
Questions & Answers about A mãe não diz nada com uma voz cansada.
Why does the sentence use both não and nada? Doesn't that make it 'doesn't say nothing'?
In Portuguese, double negatives are completely normal and required when the negative word (like nada, meaning 'nothing' or 'anything') comes after the verb. Because nada comes after the verb diz, we must put não before the verb. Literally, it translates to 'The mother does not say nothing', which is perfectly correct grammar in Portuguese.
The English translation says 'in a tired voice', but doesn't com mean 'with'?
Yes, com means 'with'. In Portuguese, you speak with a certain voice (com uma voz), whereas in English you usually speak in a certain voice. This is a great example of how prepositions often do not translate word-for-word between languages.
Why is the adjective cansada (tired) feminine?
Adjectives must match the gender of the noun they describe. Here, cansada describes voz (voice). Even though voz doesn't end in the typical feminine letter 'a', it is a feminine noun (a voz). Because of this, we must use the feminine form cansada instead of the masculine cansado.
What verb does diz come from?
It comes from the irregular verb dizer (to say / to tell). Diz is the third-person singular form (he/she/it says), which perfectly matches the subject of our sentence, A mãe (The mother).
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