Breakdown of As cortinas estão fechadas e a porta está trancada.
e
and
estar
to be (temporary / location)
a porta
the door
fechar
to close
a cortina
the curtain
trancar
to lock
Questions & Answers about As cortinas estão fechadas e a porta está trancada.
Why do fechadas and trancada have feminine endings?
When past participles are used to describe a state or condition after the verb estar, they act like adjectives. This means they must change to match the gender and number of the noun they describe. Fechadas becomes feminine plural to match as cortinas, and trancada becomes feminine singular to match a porta.
Why do we use estar (estão, está) instead of ser in this sentence?
We use estar because it describes a resulting state or a temporary condition. The curtains and the door were acted upon (someone closed and locked them), and now they are currently in that state. We use ser for permanent characteristics, which doesn't fit here.
What is the exact difference between fechada and trancada?
Fechada comes from the verb fechar, which means to close. Trancada comes from trancar, which means to lock. A door can be closed (fechada) without necessarily being locked with a key (trancada).
How are these describing words formed from the original verbs?
You start by forming the regular past participle. For -ar verbs like fechar and trancar, you drop the -ar and add -ado to get the base forms fechado and trancado. Then, you adjust the final vowel to -a, -os, or -as so it matches the noun it describes.
Learn As cortinas estão fechadas e a porta está trancada 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