Question 1

Why is the verb olha instead of olhas?

Accepted Answer

Olha is an informal command, giving an instruction to someone you would address as tu. To make a positive command for tu, you just take the normal present tense form (olhas) and drop the final 's'. If you were speaking formally to a você, you would use olhe.

Question 2

Why does the sentence use para a direita instead of à direita?

Accepted Answer

Para a direita emphasizes the physical direction, meaning 'towards the right'. À direita is usually used for a static location, meaning 'on the right' (like a shop being on the right). When telling someone where to point their eyes, para a is the most natural choice here.

Question 3

The translation says 'crossing', so why is atravessar in the basic infinitive form?

Accepted Answer

In Portuguese, whenever a verb comes directly after a preposition like de, it must stay in its basic infinitive form. English often uses the '-ing' form for this (like 'before crossing' or 'without looking'), but Portuguese strictly uses the infinitive.

Question 4

Do I always need the word de after antes?

Accepted Answer

You need de when 'before' is followed by a specific action or a noun (like antes de atravessar for 'before crossing', or antes do jantar for 'before dinner'). You only use antes entirely by itself when it just means 'earlier' or 'beforehand'.

Olha para a direita antes de atravessar.

Breakdown of Olha para a direita antes de atravessar.

Questions & Answers about Olha para a direita antes de atravessar.

Learn Olha para a direita antes de atravessar and more in Portuguese