Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Fiquei assustada com a notícia.

Fiquei assustada com a notícia.

I was frightened by the news.

Breakdown of Fiquei assustada com a notícia.

Questions & Answers about Fiquei assustada com a notícia.

Why is fiquei used here instead of estava or fui to say "I was"?

The verb ficar usually means "to stay", but it is also used to express a change in state or emotion, similar to "to get" or "to become" in English. Here, fiquei assustada means the person got frightened or became frightened upon hearing the news.

Does the ending of assustada tell us anything about the person speaking?

Yes! Because assustada ends in an -a, we know the speaker is female. A male speaker would say fiquei assustado. Adjectives describing feelings must match the gender of the person who has that feeling.

Why does the sentence use com (with) instead of por (by) for "frightened by"?

In Portuguese, certain adjectives are always followed by specific prepositions. To say you are frightened or scared by something, you use assustado com (literally "frightened with").

The English translation says "the news", but a notícia is singular. Can I say as notícias?

Yes, but there is a slight difference in meaning. In Portuguese, uma notícia is a single piece or item of news. As notícias refers to multiple pieces of news or a general news broadcast. Since this sentence is about one specific report, the singular a notícia is used.