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A professora explicou o problema.

A professora explicou o problema.
The teacher (f) explained the problem.
From Lesson 63:Past tense of regular -ar verbs·Portuguese (Portugal)

Breakdown of A professora explicou o problema.

a professora
the teacher (f)
o problema
the problem
explicar
to explain

Questions & Answers about A professora explicou o problema.

Why does the verb end in -ou?
The infinitive of the verb is explicar (to explain). To form the simple past tense for a third-person singular subject like A professora (she), we drop the -ar and add the regular ending -ou, giving us explicou.
The word problema ends in 'a'. Why does it use the masculine article o?
While most Portuguese words ending in 'a' are feminine, problema is a very common exception. Many words that end in -ma are actually masculine. Because it is a masculine noun, it must be paired with the masculine article o to mean 'the problem'.
How should I pronounce the 'x' in explicou?
In European Portuguese, when the letter 'x' comes directly before another consonant, it makes a 'sh' sound. The first syllable of explicou sounds like 'esh'.

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