Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Que coincidência, temos o mesmo nome. - What a coincidence, we have the same name.

Que coincidência, temos o mesmo nome.

What a coincidence, we have the same name.

Breakdown of Que coincidência, temos o mesmo nome.

the same (m) / a mesma / os mesmos / as mesmas

Questions & Answers about Que coincidência, temos o mesmo nome.

Why do we use o mesmo here, and why does it come before the noun?

When it means "the same", mesmo always comes right after a definite article (like o or a) and before the noun. Because nome is a masculine singular noun, we use o mesmo. If we were talking about having "the same house" (casa), it would change to match the feminine noun: a mesma casa.

Why does "What a coincidence" translate to just Que coincidência without a word for "a"?

When making an exclamation that starts with "What a..." in English, Portuguese simply uses Que directly followed by the noun. You never translate the "a" or "an". For example, "What a day!" is just Que dia!

I don't see the word for "we" (nós) in this sentence. Is it required?

No, it's not required and is usually left out to sound more natural. The verb ending in temos already makes it completely clear that the subject is "we". You only need to include nós if you really want to emphasize it.

I've seen mesmo used to mean "really" or "exactly". How do I know it means "the same" in this sentence?

It depends on where it sits in the sentence! When mesmo is placed between an article and a noun (as in o mesmo nome), it acts as an adjective meaning "the same" and changes its ending to match the noun. When used as an adverb next to a verb or time word (like agora mesmo for "right now"), it means "exactly" or "really" and never changes its spelling.