Breakdown of O carro virou na esquina.
o carro
the car
na
in the / on the / at the (f.sg)
a esquina
the corner (street)
virar
to turn
Questions & Answers about O carro virou na esquina.
Why is it na esquina (in the) instead of à esquina (at the)?
In English we say 'at the corner', but in Portuguese, we use the preposition em (in/on/at) for physical locations like this. Here, na is the contraction of em and the feminine word for 'the' (a).
I've learned that 'corner' is canto. Why use esquina here?
esquina refers specifically to the outside corner of a street or a building. canto is used for the inside corner of a room, or the corner of a page or table. Since the car is driving on a street, we use esquina.
What tense is the verb virou?
It is the simple past tense (Pretérito Perfeito) of the regular verb virar (to turn). It tells us about a single, completed action in the past, matching the English 'it turned'.
Could virou mean anything else?
Yes! Besides changing direction, virar can also mean to flip something over, to turn around, or even 'to become'. In this sentence, the context of the street corner makes it clear that the car simply changed direction.
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