Log inSign up

Que dias é que trabalhas?

Que dias é que trabalhas?
Which days do you work?
From Lesson 37:Richer questions: que + noun and é que·Portuguese (Portugal)

Breakdown of Que dias é que trabalhas?

trabalhar
to work
que
what (before a noun)
o dia
the day

Questions & Answers about Que dias é que trabalhas?

Why use "que" instead of "quais" for "which days"?
In Portuguese, when asking "what" or "which" immediately before a noun like dias, you use que. You use quais when asking "which ones" out of a specific group. So "which days" translates directly to que dias.
What does "é que" do in this sentence?
The phrase é que literally translates to "is that", but here it acts as a common question tag. It does not translate into English. Portuguese speakers use é que after question words to make the sentence sound natural and to keep the normal word order.
Shouldn't there be a word for "on" like "on which days"?
In English you say "on which days", but in Portuguese you can often ask que dias directly without a preposition. You might hear em que dias sometimes, but leaving out the em is completely natural and very common in everyday speech.
How do we know it means "do you work" if the word for "you" is missing?
The verb trabalhas ends in -as, which is the specific ending for tu, the informal word for "you". Because the verb ending already shows who is working, the word tu is dropped, which is standard practice in Portuguese.

Learn Que dias é que trabalhas 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
Start learning Portuguese →