Something that is very difficult to avoid in life, even if you hire a special worker, are household chores. Of course, now society is striving to transfer this to the appropriate services. However, some skills are still not worth losing. So let’s talk today about housework in Portuguese.
Vocabulary
Everything is very clear here and we will not surprise you. The set of household chores for all people in the world is approximately the same. Let’s see how they translate into Portuguese:
- fazer a cama – to make the bed
- pôr a mesa – to set the table
- varrer o chão – sweep the floor
- limpar o pó – remove dust
- aspirar – to vacuum
- pendurar a roupa – hang clothes
- lavar a loiça – to wash dishes
- engomar – to iron
- pôr o lixo – throw away the trash
Which of this list do you dislike doing the most?
The verb “dever”
Today we are going to look at a new verb “dever” (have to, must), which is great for this topic. We already know the verb “ter de“, which has a similar meaning. In some situations, the verb “dever” can be replaced by the verb “ter de“, and in some situations it is absolutely impossible. Let’s see examples and a little later we will analyze the scope of this verb:
Hoje deve chegar um canalizador para resolver um problema que temos na casa de banho. (A plumber should come today to fix the problem we have in the bathroom.)
A tua casa está suja. Deves arrumar os quartos mais vezes durante a semana. (Your house is dirty. You should clean your rooms more times a week.)
Ele deve-me dinheiro mas está de férias nas Maldivas. (He owes me money but he’s on vacation in Maldives.)
If you look closely, all three examples have a different message. In the first case, it expresses probability. That means “A plumber probably will come today. The second case expresses duty, that is, what someone should do. This form is frequently used to give advices. Finally, the third form just means “to owe” (money, favors, etc…).
The verb “ser” in the Imperative
The most useful verb in any language is the verb “ser” (to be). Unfortunately, both in Present and in the Imperative, it is irregular. See the table below and remember.
| Verbo “ser” in the Imperative | |
| Tu (positivo) | sê |
| Tu (negativo) | não sejas |
| Você | (não) seja |
| Vocês | (não) sejam |
In the examples, we will show some use cases for these forms:
Não sejas parvo! A máquina de lavar a loiça não funciona assim! (Don’t be a fool! The washing machine doesn’t work that way!)
Neste dia especial sejam felizes! Finalmente a vossa casa está limpa! (On this special day, be happy! Your house is finally clean!)
These tips will help you come up with your own variations for phrases and sentences.
The verb “estar” in the Imperative
In its popularity, the verb “ser” can only compete with the verb “estar“, because they are translated the same way – to be. And the difference that we will now remind you is the duration of the state, which is described by these verbs: ser – long-term state; estar – temporary.
| Verbo “estar” in the Imperative | |
| Tu (positivo) | está |
| Tu (negativo) | não estejas |
| Você | (não) esteja |
| Vocês | (não) estejam |
To anchor new knowledge, here are some examples:
Esteja mais atento quando lava a loiça. A dona da casa detesta a loiça suja. (Be careful when washing dishes. The hostess hates dirty dishes.)
Não estejam chateados. Ela só trabalha há um dia na limpeza e ainda faz erros. (Don’t be upset. She only works one day cleaning and makes mistakes.)
In fact, there are a lot of options. Feel free to use the verb “estar” in the Imperative. Moreover, now you know how to do it.
The verb “dar” in the Imperative
It is unexpected to see that such an inconspicuous verb as “dar” (to give) ended up on the list of important irregular verbs. It is difficult to imagine speech in Portuguese without the verbs “ser“, “estar” and “ir“, but the verb “dar” is not one of them. It would be more logical to see the verb “fazer” in this list, but in the Imperative it is regular. In general, what we have is what we have. Let’s see how the verb “dar” changes in the Imperative.
The affirmative form of the Imperative for the pronoun “tu“, like for other verbs, is the Present Tense verb form for the pronoun “você“: tu dá
And then everything gets more complicated. So remember:
| Verbo “dar” in the Imperative | |
| Tu (positivo) | dá |
| Tu (negativo) | não dês |
| Você | (não) dê |
| Vocês | (não) deem |
Traditionally, we will analyze the topic using examples:
Mãe, dá-me um pano. Vou limpar o pó. (Mom, give me a rag. I will dust off.)
Deem-lhe dinheiro. Ele precisa de contratar alguém para arrumar o apartamento dele. (Give him money. He needs to hire someone to clean his apartment.)
This is where the story of exceptions in the Imperative ends. You can breathe out calmly.
Conclusion
Has the topic of housework been as enjoyable and rewarding as today? There are important experiences to be learned from everything in life. However, you always have to start somewhere. Start with classes at our school!