Breakdown of O voo foi muito cansativo, por isso estou a descansar no hotel.
ser
to be
muito
much / very
estar
to be (temporary / location)
no
in the / on the / at the (m, f, pl forms: na, nos, nas)
o voo
the flight
o hotel
the hotel
descansar
to rest
por isso
therefore / so (for that reason)
cansativo
tiring
Questions & Answers about O voo foi muito cansativo, por isso estou a descansar no hotel.
How exactly does por isso work in this sentence?
Por isso translates to "so" or "therefore". It is a coordinating connector that links a cause (the flight being tiring) directly to its consequence (resting at the hotel). Literally, it translates to "for that" or "because of that".
Why use foi (was) instead of estava for the flight?
Foi is the simple past tense of ser (to be). We use ser here because an event like a flight is considered a complete, defined experience with a set duration. When evaluating an event as a whole, Portuguese uses ser rather than estar.
Why is the word cansativo used instead of cansado?
Cansativo means "tiring" (something that causes fatigue), while cansado means "tired" (the physical feeling of fatigue). The flight caused the fatigue, so it is cansativo. As a result of the flight, the speaker is now cansado (tired)!
What is the a doing in the phrase estou a descansar?
In European Portuguese, continuous actions (things happening right now, like "I am resting") are formed using the verb estar (to be) + a + the infinitive of the main verb. So, estou a descansar is the standard way to express "I am resting" in Portugal.
Learn O voo foi muito cansativo, por isso estou a descansar no hotel 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