Breakdown of Que tipo de música ouves?
de
of / from / by (means of transport) / wearing (attire)
que
what (before a noun)
a música
the music
ouvir
to hear
o tipo
the type; the guy (colloquial)
Questions & Answers about Que tipo de música ouves?
Why is it Que instead of Qual here for 'What'?
In Portuguese, when the question word comes immediately before a noun (like tipo), you use Que. You generally use Qual when the question word stands alone, is followed by the preposition de, or is followed by the verb ser (to be), such as in Qual é o teu tipo de música favorito? (What is your favorite type of music?).
Why isn't there a preposition like 'to' in the Portuguese sentence?
In English, you 'listen to' something, but the Portuguese verb ouvir directly connects to its object. It doesn't need a preposition like a or para. You just put the thing you are listening to directly after the verb.
Which version of 'you' does ouves use?
ouves is the tu (informal singular 'you') conjugation of the verb ouvir (to hear/listen). Because the -es ending makes it completely obvious who the subject is, the pronoun tu is usually dropped from the sentence.
Can I use the verb escutar instead of ouvir here?
Yes, you could say Que tipo de música escutas?. Technically, ouvir means to hear (a physical sense) and escutar means to listen (paying attention). However, in everyday European Portuguese, ouvir is commonly used for both, and ouvir música is the most standard, natural way to say 'listen to music'.
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