Question 1

Why do we say do anel instead of something like "o anel's prata"?

Accepted Answer

Portuguese does not have an apostrophe-s for possession like English does. Instead, you must always use the structure "the [item] of the [owner]". Here, do is the required contraction of de (of) and o (the), giving us literally "the silver of the ring".

Question 2

Why is the adjective antiga feminine when the word right before it, anel, is masculine?

Accepted Answer

The adjective antiga describes the subject of the sentence, which is a prata (the silver), a feminine noun. It does not describe the ring itself. If you wanted to say the ring was old, you would say o anel é antigo.

Question 3

Why do we use é instead of está for the word "is" here?

Accepted Answer

We use é (from the verb ser) because being antique or old is a permanent, defining characteristic of the material. The verb estar is used for temporary conditions, and silver does not temporarily become old.

Question 4

If there were multiple rings, how would I make anel plural?

Accepted Answer

To make most Portuguese nouns ending in -l plural, you drop the -l and add -is. Therefore, the plural of anel is anéis. Note that it also gains an accent mark on the e to keep the pronunciation of that vowel open!

A prata do anel é antiga.

Breakdown of A prata do anel é antiga.

Questions & Answers about A prata do anel é antiga.

Learn A prata do anel é antiga and more in Portuguese