Question 1

Why aren't português and inglês capitalized?

Accepted Answer

In Portuguese, the names of languages, nationalities, days of the week, and months are written in lowercase unless they appear at the very beginning of a sentence.

Question 2

Do I always need to include the pronouns Eu (I) and tu (you)?

Accepted Answer

No, you can easily drop them and just say falo português e falas inglês. Because the verb endings already tell the listener exactly who is doing the action, the pronouns are optional. We often include them for emphasis or to show contrast between two people, which is exactly what this sentence is doing!

Question 3

Why is it falo for me but falas for you?

Accepted Answer

Portuguese verbs change their endings depending on who is doing the action. For regular verbs ending in -ar like falar (to speak), the form for 'I' ends in -o (falo) and the form for the informal 'you' ends in -as (falas).

Question 4

When should I use tu to mean 'you'?

Accepted Answer

tu is the informal 'you' in Portugal. You use it with friends, family, children, and people your own age in casual settings. If you are speaking to a stranger, a boss, or someone older, you would use a more formal way of speaking, which changes the verb to fala instead of falas.

Question 5

How is the word e (and) pronounced here?

Accepted Answer

The word e usually sounds like the 'ee' in the English word 'see' or a short 'ih' sound. Be careful not to confuse it with é (is), which has an accent mark and sounds like the 'e' in 'pet'.

Eu falo português e tu falas inglês.

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