Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Ele calça o sapato esquerdo.

Ele calça o sapato esquerdo.

He puts on his left shoe.

Breakdown of Ele calça o sapato esquerdo.

Questions & Answers about Ele calça o sapato esquerdo.

Why does the sentence use o sapato (the shoe) instead of o seu sapato (his shoe)?

In Portuguese, when it is obvious who the owner is—especially with clothing or body parts—you usually just use the definite article (o or a) instead of a possessive word like seu. Because the sentence starts with Ele, it is naturally understood that he is putting on his own shoe.

Wait, does calça mean "puts on"? I thought the word for "pants" was calças.

You are absolutely right that as calças means pants or trousers. However, in this sentence, calça is an action. It is the he/she/it form of the verb calçar, which specifically means to put on footwear (like shoes or socks) or gloves.

If I want to say "He puts on a shirt", can I also use the verb calçar?

No, calçar is strictly reserved for things you put on your hands or feet. For regular clothing that goes on your body, like a shirt or a dress, you must use the verb vestir.

Why is esquerdo (left) placed after the noun sapato (shoe)?

In Portuguese, descriptive adjectives normally come right after the noun they describe. Instead of "left shoe", the structure is "shoe left" (sapato esquerdo). The adjective also ends in -o to agree with the masculine, singular noun sapato.