Log inSign up

O perigo é grande, tens de ter cuidado.

O perigo é grande, tens de ter cuidado.
The danger is great, you have to be careful.
From Lesson 97:Negative commands (não pises, não pise)·Portuguese (Portugal)

Questions & Answers about O perigo é grande, tens de ter cuidado.

Why do we use tens de ter instead of a direct command here?
Tens de ter means "you have to have" (using ter de, meaning "to have to"). Even though you are learning imperatives, native speakers often use ter de to give strong advice or express an obligation instead of a direct command. A direct affirmative command would be tem cuidado (be careful).
How would we turn this into a negative imperative?
The current lesson covers negative imperatives, which require a different verb form (the present subjunctive). If you wanted to command someone "don't be careful" (however unlikely!), you would drop the tens de and use the negative imperative of ter for the informal tu form: não tenhas cuidado.
Why doesn't the Portuguese sentence use the verb "to be" for "be careful"?
In Portuguese, you express being careful by saying you "have care" (ter cuidado). Cuidado is a noun here. This is similar to other physical or mental states expressed with ter in Portuguese, like ter fome (to be hungry) or ter sede (to be thirsty).
Why does grande end in "e" if o perigo is a masculine noun?
Adjectives that end in -e in Portuguese, like grande, are gender-neutral. They keep the exact same form whether they describe a masculine noun (like o perigo) or a feminine noun.

Learn O perigo é grande, tens de ter cuidado 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 →