Questions & Answers about A viagem não foi fácil.
Wait, doesn't foi also mean "went"? How do I know it means "was" here?
You're exactly right! The verbs ser (to be) and ir (to go) share the exact same forms in the simple past tense. Foi can mean "it was" or "it went" (as well as he/she went/was). You have to use the context to tell them apart. Here, because it's followed by the describing word fácil (easy), it means "was". If it were followed by a destination, like foi para Lisboa (he went to Lisbon), it would mean "went".
Viagem (trip) doesn't end in "a" or "o". How do we know to use the feminine word a (the) before it?
Why does the word não (not) come before the verb instead of after it?
In Portuguese, the word não almost always goes directly before the verb it is negating. While in English we say "was not", in Portuguese it translates literally as "not was" (não foi).
Would the word fácil (easy) change if the subject was a masculine word instead of a feminine one?
No, fácil stays exactly the same for both! Adjectives (describing words) that end in -l, like fácil (easy), difícil (hard), or amável (kind), don't have separate masculine and feminine forms. They only change if you need to make them plural, which would be fáceis.
Learn A viagem não foi fácil 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