What does “you” mean in Portuguese?
The English pronoun “you” names the person spoken to. English has one word for everyone: a friend, a child, a stranger, the President. Portuguese does not. It makes you choose, every time you speak to someone, how close you are to them. This lesson teaches tu, the “you” of friends, family and equals: tu és (“you are”), e tu? (“and you?”), quem és tu? (“who are you?”).
The first thing to learn is who you may call tu. In Portugal tu is for friends, brothers and sisters, partners, children, classmates and young people of your own age. To a stranger, an older person, a shopkeeper or anyone you should treat with respect, Portugal says o senhor or a senhora (“sir”, “madam”), with the verb in the third person: O senhor é o Dr. Costa? “Are you Dr Costa?”. Portuguese has a verb for the choice: tratar por tu, “to call someone tu”. Asking Podemos tratar-nos por tu? (“Shall we say tu to each other?”) is a small social event.
The second thing to learn is that tu, like eu in Lesson 8, is usually left out. Every verb has its own tu form, ending in -s: falas (“you speak”), tens (“you have”), és (“you are”), estás (“you are”). Tens razão already means “you’re right”. Tu appears when it does a job: emphasis, contrast (se tu não vais, eu também não vou), a question about the person (quem és tu?) or a short answer (E tu?).
The third thing is that tu, like eu, changes with its job: tu (subject), te (object: vejo-te, “I see you”), ti (after a preposition: para ti, “for you”) and contigo (“with you”, one word). The possessive is teu, tua (“your”).
The word comes straight from Latin tu, unchanged in spelling. Te continues Latin te, ti continues Latin tibi, and contigo is con- added to Latin tecum, “with you”, just as comigo came from mecum.
What about você? In Brazil, você is the everyday word for “you” between friends, and Brazilian courses teach it first. In Portugal it is used, but it is delicate: many people, above all older and educated speakers, find você said to their face cold or rude, and the language advice service Ciberdúvidas advises a foreigner not to use it. The safe pair in Portugal is tu for friends and o senhor, a senhora for everyone else. This lesson uses European Portuguese, as Lesson 5 declared for this course. Section E describes Brazilian usage.
FAQ: What does tu mean in Portuguese?
Q: How do I say “you” in Portuguese? A: To a friend, tu: tu és o Rui? “Are you Rui?”. But usually you leave it out: és o Rui? To a stranger or an older person in Portugal, o senhor or a senhora: a senhora é a Dona Lurdes?
Q: How do I say “and you?” A: E tu? to a friend; e o senhor? or e a senhora? to someone you do not know.
Q: How do I say “for you” and “with you”? A: Para ti and contigo. After a preposition tu becomes ti (para ti, de ti, sem ti), and com + ti is written contigo.
Q: Is “tu foste” or “tu fostes” correct? A: Tu foste. The tu form of the preterite ends in -ste with no s: foste, fizeste, pagaste. Fostes is the old vós form.
Q: How do I say “you” to more than one person? A: Vocês, with the verb in the third person plural: vocês querem café? “Do you want coffee?”. In Portugal vocês is the ordinary plural of tu, and it is not rude.
Key Takeaways: -
Tu = “you”, singular and familiar: for friends, family, children and people of your own age -
To strangers and older people in Portugal say o senhor, a senhora, with a third-person verb; be careful with você -
Portuguese usually drops tu, because the verb ending -s already says “you”: falas, tens, és -
The other forms: te (object), ti (after prepositions), contigo (with you); possessive teu, tua -
The tu form of the preterite ends in -ste, never -stes: foste, fizeste
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tu /tu/ — a short, pure u, as in English “too” but without the glide at the end. Keep the t dry: Portuguese t has no puff of air, and it is made with the tongue against the back of the upper teeth.
te /tɨ/ — the unstressed e of European Portuguese, very short and weak. Attached to a verb it almost disappears: trata-te sounds like “TRAH-tuht”, vejo-te like “VAY-zhoot”.
ti /ti/ — a clear i, as in English “tea” but short. In Portugal the t stays a t. In much of Brazil t before i becomes “ch”: ti /tʃi/.
contigo /kõˈtiɡu/ — stressed on the middle syllable: kong-TEE-goo, with the first o nasal. It rhymes with comigo.
teu /tew/ — the same diphthong as eu: “tay-oo” in one syllable, with the weight on the e. Tua /ˈtuɐ/ has two syllables: TOO-uh.
Verb endings of tu: the final -s is /ʃ/, like English “sh”, in Portugal: falas /ˈfalɐʃ/, és /ɛʃ/, estás /ɨʃˈtaʃ/. Before a voiced consonant it is /ʒ/ in connected speech: és muito alto /ɛʒ ˈmũjtu ˈaltu/.
Stress: when tu is used, it usually carries weight: Tu também? Quem és tu? Te, being an object pronoun, is never stressed.
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Duplex Method: line a gives each Portuguese word with its meaning; line b gives the same words with IPA and grammatical glosses.
9.1a E and tu you
9.1b E /i/ and tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG
9.2a Tu you também also
9.2b Tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG também /tɐ̃ˈbɐ̃j̃/ also
9.3a Tu you primeiro first
9.3b Tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG primeiro /pɾiˈmɐjɾu/ first.M.SG
9.4a Quem who és are tu you
9.4b Quem /kɐ̃j̃/ who és /ɛʃ/ be.PRES.2SG tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG
9.5a Tu you tens you-have razão reason
9.5b Tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG tens /tɐ̃j̃ʃ/ have.PRES.2SG razão /ʁɐˈzɐ̃w̃/ reason.F.SG
9.6a Podemos we-can tratar-nos to-address-each-other por by tu you
9.6b Podemos /puˈdemuʃ/ can.PRES.1PL tratar-nos /tɾɐˈtaɾnuʃ/ treat.INF-RECP.1PL por /puɾ/ by tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG
9.7a Se if tu you não not vais you-go eu I também also não not vou I-go
9.7b Se /sɨ/ if tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG vais /vajʃ/ go.PRES.2SG eu /ew/ I.NOM.1SG também /tɐ̃ˈbɐ̃j̃/ also não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG vou /vo/ go.PRES.1SG
9.8a Esta this prenda present é is para for ti you não not é is para for o the teu your irmão brother
9.8b Esta /ˈɛʃtɐ/ this.F.SG prenda /ˈpɾẽdɐ/ present.F.SG é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG para /ˈpɐɾɐ/ for ti /ti/ you.OBL.2SG não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG para /ˈpɐɾɐ/ for o /u/ the.M.SG teu /tew/ your.M.SG irmão /iɾˈmɐ̃w̃/ brother.M.SG
9.9a Foste were tu you que who fizeste you-made este this bolo cake
9.9b Foste /ˈfoʃtɨ/ be.PRET.2SG tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG que /kɨ/ REL fizeste /fiˈzɛʃtɨ/ make.PRET.2SG este /ˈeʃtɨ/ this.M.SG bolo /ˈbolu/ cake.M.SG
9.10a Gosto I-like muito much de of falar to-talk contigo with-you
9.10b Gosto /ˈɡɔʃtu/ like.PRES.1SG muito /ˈmũjtu/ much de /dɨ/ of falar /fɐˈlaɾ/ talk.INF contigo /kõˈtiɡu/ with-you.2SG
9.11a Quando when tu you chegares you-arrive eu I já already estou I-am à at-the tua your espera wait na in-the estação station
9.11b Quando /ˈkwɐ̃du/ when tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG chegares /ʃɨˈɡaɾɨʃ/ arrive.FUT.SUBJ.2SG eu /ew/ I.NOM.1SG já /ʒa/ already estou /ɨʃˈto/ be.PRES.1SG à /a/ at-the.F.SG tua /ˈtuɐ/ your.F.SG espera /ɨʃˈpɛɾɐ/ wait.F.SG na /nɐ/ in-the.F.SG estação /ɨʃtɐˈsɐ̃w̃/ station.F.SG
9.12a Não not sei I-know se whether tu you te yourself lembras you-remember de of mim me mas but fomos we-were colegas classmates na in-the escola school
9.12b Não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG sei /sɐj/ know.PRES.1SG se /sɨ/ whether tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG te /tɨ/ REFL.2SG lembras /ˈlẽbɾɐʃ/ remember.PRES.2SG de /dɨ/ of mim /mĩ/ me.OBL.1SG mas /mɐʃ/ but fomos /ˈfomuʃ/ be.PRET.1PL colegas /kuˈlɛɡɐʃ/ classmate.PL na /nɐ/ in-the.F.SG escola /ɨʃˈkɔlɐ/ school.F.SG
9.13a Ela she é is mais more nova young do of-the que than tu you mas but sabe she-knows mais more do of-that que which tu you pensas you-think
9.13b Ela /ˈɛlɐ/ she é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG mais /majʃ/ more nova /ˈnɔvɐ/ young.F.SG do /du/ of-the.M.SG que /kɨ/ than tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG mas /mɐʃ/ but sabe /ˈsabɨ/ know.PRES.3SG mais /majʃ/ more do /du/ of-that.M.SG que /kɨ/ REL tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG pensas /ˈpẽsɐʃ/ think.PRES.2SG
9.14a Às at-the vezes times gostava I-would-like de of ser to-be tu you nada nothing te you preocupa worries
9.14b Às /aʃ/ at-the.F.PL vezes /ˈvezɨʃ/ time.F.PL gostava /ɡuʃˈtavɐ/ like.IMPERF.1SG de /dɨ/ of ser /seɾ/ be.INF tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG nada /ˈnadɐ/ nothing te /tɨ/ you.ACC.2SG preocupa /pɾiɔˈkupɐ/ worry.PRES.3SG
9.15a Diz-me tell-me com with quem whom andas you-go-about dir-te-ei I-will-tell-you quem who és you-are
9.15b Diz-me /ˈdiʒmɨ/ say.IMP.2SG-me.DAT.1SG com /kõ/ with quem /kɐ̃j̃/ who andas /ˈɐ̃dɐʃ/ walk.PRES.2SG dir-te-ei /diɾtɨˈɐj/ say.FUT-you.DAT.2SG-1SG quem /kɐ̃j̃/ who és /ɛʃ/ be.PRES.2SG
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9.1 E tu? → “And you?”
9.2 Tu também? → “You too?”
9.3 Tu primeiro. → “You first.”
9.4 Quem és tu? → “Who are you?”
9.5 Tu tens razão. → “You’re right.”
9.6 Podemos tratar-nos por tu? → “Shall we say tu to each other?”
9.7 Se tu não vais, eu também não vou. → “If you’re not going, I’m not going either.”
9.8 Esta prenda é para ti, não é para o teu irmão. → “This present is for you, not for your brother.”
9.9 Foste tu que fizeste este bolo? → “Was it you who made this cake?”
9.10 Gosto muito de falar contigo. → “I really like talking to you.”
9.11 Quando tu chegares, eu já estou à tua espera na estação. → “When you arrive, I’ll already be waiting for you at the station.”
9.12 Não sei se tu te lembras de mim, mas fomos colegas na escola. → “I don’t know if you remember me, but we were at school together.”
9.13 Ela é mais nova do que tu, mas sabe mais do que tu pensas. → “She’s younger than you, but she knows more than you think.”
9.14 Às vezes gostava de ser tu: nada te preocupa. → “Sometimes I wish I were you: nothing worries you.”
9.15 Diz-me com quem andas, dir-te-ei quem és. → “Tell me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are.” (Traditional saying.)
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9.1 E tu?
9.2 Tu também?
9.3 Tu primeiro.
9.4 Quem és tu?
9.5 Tu tens razão.
9.6 Podemos tratar-nos por tu?
9.7 Se tu não vais, eu também não vou.
9.8 Esta prenda é para ti, não é para o teu irmão.
9.9 Foste tu que fizeste este bolo?
9.10 Gosto muito de falar contigo.
9.11 Quando tu chegares, eu já estou à tua espera na estação.
9.12 Não sei se tu te lembras de mim, mas fomos colegas na escola.
9.13 Ela é mais nova do que tu, mas sabe mais do que tu pensas.
9.14 Às vezes gostava de ser tu: nada te preocupa.
9.15 Diz-me com quem andas, dir-te-ei quem és.
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These are the grammar rules for tu in Portuguese:
1. The forms of the second person singular
tu — subject: tu és, “you are”
te — direct and indirect object, attached to the verb: vejo-te, “I see you”; dir-te-ei, “I will tell you” (9.15); also reflexive: lembras-te, “you remember” (9.12)
ti — after a preposition: para ti, “for you” (9.8); de ti, “of/from you”; sem ti, “without you”; em ti, “in you”
contigo — com + ti, always written as one word: falar contigo, “to talk to you” (9.10)
The possessives teu, tua, teus, tuas (“your, yours”) agree with the thing possessed, as meu does: o teu irmão (9.8), à tua espera (9.11).
2. The tu form of the verb
Almost every tense marks tu with a final -s: falas, tens, és, estás, vais, pensas, andas; chegares and tiveres in the future subjunctive. The one exception is the preterite, which ends in -ste: foste, fizeste (9.9), pagaste, falaste. There is no s at the end of these.
3. Tu is usually left out
Since the ending already says “you”, a plain sentence needs no tu: És o Rui? Tens razão. Gosto de falar contigo. Tu is used, as eu is (Lesson 8), for emphasis (Tu tens razão, 9.5: “you’re the one who’s right”), contrast (se tu não vais, eu também não vou, 9.7), in questions about who someone is (Quem és tu?, 9.4), and on its own (E tu?, 9.1; Tu também?, 9.2; Tu primeiro, 9.3).
4. Who gets tu: the forms of address in Portugal
Tu + second person verb: friends, family, partners, children, classmates, young people of your own age. Teachers say tu to their pupils.
O senhor, a senhora + third person verb: strangers, older people, customers, anyone owed respect. A senhora mora cá no prédio? (9.24). The plural is os senhores, as senhoras.
The name or title + third person verb: very common in Portugal and often the most natural choice. O Tiago quer café? “Do you want coffee, Tiago?”; A Dona Lurdes precisa de alguma coisa? Older people often say a menina, o menino to a young person: A menina é a Inês? (9.23).
Você + third person verb: exists, but in Portugal it can sound distant, or worse, condescending. Avoid it to someone’s face until you hear how they use it.
Changing from o senhor to tu is the older or senior person’s offer to make: Podemos tratar-nos por tu? (9.6). The relationship can also be unequal: an older person may say tu to a young person who answers with a senhora (9.26–9.29).
5. The plural of tu: vocês
To more than one person, Portugal says vocês, with a third person plural verb: Vocês querem café? Vocês is the normal plural of tu and is not rude, even though você in the singular can be. The old plural vós survives in some northern regions, in the liturgy (O Senhor esteja convosco, “the Lord be with you”) and in older literature, but learners should not use it.
6. Tu after ser and in comparisons
In identifying sentences ser agrees with tu, and so does the verb in the que clause: Foste tu que fizeste este bolo? (9.9). After do que and como, the subject form is used: mais nova do que tu (9.13), tão alto como tu. After ser in a wish: gostava de ser tu (9.14).
7. The position of te
In European Portuguese te follows the verb with a hyphen: vejo-te, trata-te. Words such as não, se, que, quando, nada and já pull it in front: se tu te lembras (9.12), nada te preocupa (9.14). In the future and the conditional, the pronoun goes inside the verb: dir-te-ei (9.15), “I will tell you”, is dir-ei with te placed in the middle. In speech many people prefer vou-te dizer.
8. The tu imperative
The affirmative tu imperative usually looks like the third person of the present: fala!, desculpa! (9.19), espera! A few verbs are irregular: diz! (9.15), faz!, vem! The negative uses the present subjunctive: não fales!, não digas!, não faças!
9. Para tu + infinitive
As with eu (Lesson 8, rule 6), when the pronoun is the subject of a following infinitive, the subject form is used, and the infinitive takes the ending -es: Isto é para tu leres, “this is for you to read”; antes de tu saíres, “before you leave”. Compare isto é para ti, “this is for you”.
Common mistakes for English speakers:
Mistake: Tu to a stranger or an older person. ✗ Tu sabes onde fica a estação? (to an elderly lady) → ✓ A senhora sabe onde fica a estação?
Mistake: Using você as a neutral “you” in Portugal. ✗ Você quer um café? (to someone older) → ✓ O senhor quer um café? or Quer um café?
Mistake: An s on the preterite. ✗ Tu fostes, tu fizestes → ✓ Tu foste, tu fizeste.
Mistake: Third person verb with tu. ✗ Tu é, tu tem → ✓ Tu és, tu tens.
Mistake: Ti or tu after com. ✗ com ti, com tu → ✓ contigo.
Mistake: Tu after a preposition. ✗ para tu (meaning “for you”) → ✓ para ti.
Mistake: Tu in every sentence. ✗ Tu falas português? Tu moras aqui? Tu gostas de Lisboa? → ✓ Falas português? Moras aqui? Gostas de Lisboa?
Mistake: Te before the verb in a plain statement. ✗ Eu te vejo amanhã → ✓ Vejo-te amanhã. (Eu te vejo is Brazilian.)
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Frequency
Tu itself is less frequent than “you” in English, because the verb ending carries the meaning. Its forms, te, ti, contigo, teu, tua, and above all the -s of the verb, are everywhere in Portuguese between friends.
Portugal and Brazil
In Portugal, as in this course, tu is the familiar “you”, and o senhor, a senhora are the polite one. Você is used in Portugal too, but with care: the language advice service Ciberdúvidas warns that it is not well received in some regions and by some people, and that a foreigner does better with o senhor, a senhora.
In most of Brazil the situation is reversed: você is the everyday “you” of friends and family, and o senhor, a senhora mark respect. Tu is heard in several regions of Brazil, often with the third person verb in casual speech (tu vai), which is not standard. A learner of Brazilian Portuguese would learn você first.
The plural is vocês on both sides of the Atlantic.
Pronunciation: in much of Brazil the t of ti and te is pronounced like English “ch”: ti /tʃi/. In Portugal it stays a plain t.
Tratar por tu
Tratar alguém por tu means to address someone as tu, and the change from o senhor to tu marks a friendship. Informally, someone who handles a subject with ease is said to tratar o assunto por tu. Tu cá, tu lá describes two people on very familiar terms.
A menina, o menino
Older people in Portugal often address a girl or young woman as a menina and a boy or young man as o menino, with a third person verb. It is affectionate and respectful at once, and it is how Dona Lurdes greets Inês in the dialogue below (9.23).
Idioms with tu and its forms: -
“E tu?” — and you? how about you? -
“Tratar por tu” — to call someone tu; to be on familiar terms -
“Tu cá, tu lá” — on very familiar terms -
“Contigo, pão e cebola” — with you, bread and onions will do: love needs no riches (saying) -
“Diz-me com quem andas, dir-te-ei quem és” — tell me who your friends are and I’ll tell you who you are (9.15). An older form, Dize-me com quem andas, dir-te-ei quem tu és, uses the old imperative dize and writes tu out.
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Source: Luís Vaz de Camões, Os Lusíadas (1572), Canto III, stanza 119, lines 1–4. The text follows oslusiadas.org and agrees with the TriploV edition of the Canto.
Context: Os Lusíadas is the national epic of Portugal, the story of Vasco da Gama’s voyage to India and of Portuguese history. Stanza 119 comes at the start of the episode of Inês de Castro, the beloved of Prince Pedro, killed in 1355 on the orders of his father, King Afonso IV. Camões does not begin by blaming the king. He turns and speaks to Love itself, as tu.
F-A: Interlinear Construed Text
F.1a Tu you só alone tu you puro pure Amor Love com with força force crua cruel
F.1b Tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG só /sɔ/ alone tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG puro /ˈpuɾu/ pure.M.SG Amor /ɐˈmoɾ/ love.M.SG.VOC com /kõ/ with força /ˈfoɾsɐ/ force.F.SG crua /ˈkɾuɐ/ raw.F.SG
F.2a Que which os the corações hearts humanos human tanto so-much obriga binds
F.2b Que /kɨ/ REL os /uʃ/ the.M.PL corações /kuɾɐˈsõjʃ/ heart.M.PL humanos /uˈmɐnuʃ/ human.M.PL tanto /ˈtɐ̃tu/ so-much obriga /ɔˈbɾiɡɐ/ bind.PRES.3SG
F.3a Deste you-gave causa cause à to-the molesta grievous morte death sua her
F.3b Deste /ˈdeʃtɨ/ give.PRET.2SG causa /ˈkawzɐ/ cause.F.SG à /a/ to-the.F.SG molesta /muˈlɛʃtɐ/ grievous.F.SG morte /ˈmɔɾtɨ/ death.F.SG sua /ˈsuɐ/ her.F.SG
F.4a Como as se if fora she-were pérfida treacherous inimiga enemy
F.4b Como /ˈkomu/ as se /sɨ/ if fora /ˈfoɾɐ/ be.PLUPERF.3SG pérfida /ˈpɛɾfidɐ/ treacherous.F.SG inimiga /iniˈmiɡɐ/ enemy.F.SG
F-B: Authentic Text with Idiomatic English Translation
Tu só, tu, puro Amor, com força crua, Que os corações humanos tanto obriga, Deste causa à molesta morte sua, Como se fora pérfida inimiga.
→ “You alone, you, pure Love, whose cruel force holds human hearts so bound, you were the cause of her grievous death, as if she had been your treacherous enemy.” (Latinum Institute translation.)
F-C: Authentic Text Only
Tu só, tu, puro Amor, com força crua, Que os corações humanos tanto obriga, Deste causa à molesta morte sua, Como se fora pérfida inimiga.
F-D: Grammar and Literary Commentary
Tu só, tu (line 1) — the pronoun is written twice, with só, “alone”, between. Portuguese could have said only Deste causa (line 3): the ending -ste already means “you”. Camões writes tu because he is accusing: you, and no one else. It is rule 3 of Section D at its strongest: tu for emphasis.
puro Amor (line 1) — a vocative, naming the one addressed. Love is spoken to as a person, and as tu: the poet speaks to a god, not a stranger. In poetry tu is the form for speaking to personified forces, Love, Death, the Sea, without any idea of familiarity: Pessoa’s Ó mar salgado, quanto do teu sal speaks to the sea the same way.
com força crua (line 1) — crua means “raw”, here “cruel, merciless”. It agrees with força: feminine singular.
Que os corações humanos tanto obriga (line 2) — que refers back to Love and its force, so the verb is third person, obriga. Obrigar here keeps its old sense, “to bind, to compel”.
Deste causa (line 3) — the main verb, finally, after two lines of address: deste, the preterite of dar for tu, “you gave”. Dar causa a is “to be the cause of”. Note the ending -ste, with no s (Section D, rule 2). Do not confuse it with deste = de + este, “of this”.
à molesta morte sua (line 3) — sua is placed after the noun, as poetry allows; it means “her”, Inês’s. Molesta is “grievous, painful”, not English “molest”.
Como se fora (line 4) — fora is the pluperfect of ser, used here, as in older Portuguese, where modern prose would write fosse: como se fosse, “as if she were”. It is third person: the subject is Inês, not tu. With tu it would have been foras.
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Inês has just moved into a student building in Lisbon. On the stairs she meets Tiago, who lives on the floor above, and then the landlady, Dona Lurdes. In ten minutes she learns who gets tu and who does not.
Part A: Interlinear Construed Text
9.16a Olá hello Tu you és you-are a the nova new vizinha neighbour do of-the terceiro third andar floor
9.16b Olá /ɔˈla/ hello Tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG és /ɛʃ/ be.PRES.2SG a /ɐ/ the.F.SG nova /ˈnɔvɐ/ new.F.SG vizinha /viˈziɲɐ/ neighbour.F.SG do /du/ of-the.M.SG terceiro /tɨɾˈsɐjɾu/ third.M.SG andar /ɐ̃ˈdaɾ/ floor.M.SG
9.17a Sou I-am sim yes Chamo-me I-call-myself Inês Inês E and tu you
9.17b Sou /so/ be.PRES.1SG sim /sĩ/ yes Chamo-me /ˈʃɐmumɨ/ call.PRES.1SG-REFL.1SG Inês /iˈneʃ/ Inês E /i/ and tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG
9.18a Eu I sou am o the Tiago Tiago Também also és you-are estudante student
9.18b Eu /ew/ I.NOM.1SG sou /so/ be.PRES.1SG o /u/ the.M.SG Tiago /tiˈaɡu/ Tiago Também /tɐ̃ˈbɐ̃j̃/ also és /ɛʃ/ be.PRES.2SG estudante /ɨʃtuˈdɐ̃tɨ/ student.SG
9.19a Sou I-am Desculpa excuse não not sei I-know se whether te you posso I-can tratar to-address por by tu you
9.19b Sou /so/ be.PRES.1SG Desculpa /dɨʃˈkulpɐ/ excuse.IMP.2SG não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG sei /sɐj/ know.PRES.1SG se /sɨ/ whether te /tɨ/ you.ACC.2SG posso /ˈpɔsu/ can.PRES.1SG tratar /tɾɐˈtaɾ/ treat.INF por /puɾ/ by tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG
9.20a Claro clear que that podes you-can Entre between estudantes students toda all a the gente people se itself trata addresses por by tu you
9.20b Claro /ˈklaɾu/ clear.M.SG que /kɨ/ that podes /ˈpɔdɨʃ/ can.PRES.2SG Entre /ˈẽtɾɨ/ between estudantes /ɨʃtuˈdɐ̃tɨʃ/ student.PL toda /ˈtodɐ/ all.F.SG a /ɐ/ the.F.SG gente /ˈʒẽtɨ/ people.F.SG se /sɨ/ RECP.3 trata /ˈtɾatɐ/ treat.PRES.3SG por /puɾ/ by tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG
9.21a Ainda still bem well E and tu you conheces you-know a the senhoria landlady
9.21b Ainda /ɐˈĩdɐ/ still bem /bɐ̃j̃/ well E /i/ and tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG conheces /kuˈɲɛsɨʃ/ know.PRES.2SG a /ɐ/ the.F.SG senhoria /sɨɲuˈɾiɐ/ landlady.F.SG
9.22a A the Dona Dona Lurdes Lurdes Com with ela her não not é it-is tu you é it-is a the senhora lady Tem she-has setenta seventy anos years
9.22b A /ɐ/ the.F.SG Dona /ˈdonɐ/ Dona Lurdes /ˈluɾdɨʃ/ Lurdes Com /kõ/ with ela /ˈɛlɐ/ she.OBL.3SG não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG a /ɐ/ the.F.SG senhora /sɨˈɲoɾɐ/ lady.F.SG Tem /tɐ̃j̃/ have.PRES.3SG setenta /sɨˈtẽtɐ/ seventy anos /ˈɐnuʃ/ year.M.PL
9.23a Bom good dia day A the menina young-lady é is a the Inês Inês não not é is-it
9.23b Bom /bõ/ good.M.SG dia /ˈdiɐ/ day.M.SG A /ɐ/ the.F.SG menina /mɨˈninɐ/ girl.F.SG é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG a /ɐ/ the.F.SG Inês /iˈneʃ/ Inês não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG
9.24a Sou I-am sim yes Muito much prazer pleasure A the senhora lady mora lives cá here no in-the prédio building
9.24b Sou /so/ be.PRES.1SG sim /sĩ/ yes Muito /ˈmũjtu/ much.M.SG prazer /pɾɐˈzeɾ/ pleasure.M.SG A /ɐ/ the.F.SG senhora /sɨˈɲoɾɐ/ lady.F.SG mora /ˈmɔɾɐ/ live.PRES.3SG cá /ka/ here no /nu/ in-the.M.SG prédio /ˈpɾɛdju/ building.M.SG
9.25a Moro I-live no on-the primeiro first andar floor Se if precisar you-need de of alguma some coisa thing é it-is só only bater to-knock à at-the porta door
9.25b Moro /ˈmɔɾu/ live.PRES.1SG no /nu/ in-the.M.SG primeiro /pɾiˈmɐjɾu/ first.M.SG andar /ɐ̃ˈdaɾ/ floor.M.SG Se /sɨ/ if precisar /pɾɨsiˈzaɾ/ need.FUT.SUBJ.3SG de /dɨ/ of alguma /alˈɡumɐ/ some.F.SG coisa /ˈkojzɐ/ thing.F.SG é /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG só /sɔ/ only bater /bɐˈteɾ/ knock.INF à /a/ at-the.F.SG porta /ˈpɔɾtɐ/ door.F.SG
9.26a E and tu you Tiago Tiago Já already pagaste you-paid a the renda rent deste of-this mês month
9.26b E /i/ and tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG Tiago /tiˈaɡu/ Tiago Já /ʒa/ already pagaste /pɐˈɡaʃtɨ/ pay.PRET.2SG a /ɐ/ the.F.SG renda /ˈʁẽdɐ/ rent.F.SG deste /ˈdeʃtɨ/ of-this.M.SG mês /meʃ/ month.M.SG
9.27a Ainda still não not Dona Dona Lurdes Lurdes Pago I-pay amanhã tomorrow prometo I-promise
9.27b Ainda /ɐˈĩdɐ/ still não /nɐ̃w̃/ NEG Dona /ˈdonɐ/ Dona Lurdes /ˈluɾdɨʃ/ Lurdes Pago /ˈpaɡu/ pay.PRES.1SG amanhã /amɐˈɲɐ̃/ tomorrow prometo /pɾuˈmetu/ promise.PRES.1SG
9.28a Tu you dizes you-say isso that todos all os the meses months
9.28b Tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG dizes /ˈdizɨʃ/ say.PRES.2SG isso /ˈisu/ that.DEM todos /ˈtoduʃ/ all.M.PL os /uʃ/ the.M.PL meses /ˈmezɨʃ/ month.M.PL
9.29a Então so ela she trata-te addresses-you por by tu you e and tu you dizes you-say a the senhora lady
9.29b Então /ẽˈtɐ̃w̃/ so ela /ˈɛlɐ/ she.NOM.3SG trata-te /ˈtɾatɐtɨ/ treat.PRES.3SG-you.ACC.2SG por /puɾ/ by tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG e /i/ and tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG dizes /ˈdizɨʃ/ say.PRES.2SG a /ɐ/ the.F.SG senhora /sɨˈɲoɾɐ/ lady.F.SG
9.30a É it-is assim so mesmo just Quando when tu you tiveres you-have setenta seventy anos years também also tratas you-address os the estudantes students por by tu you
9.30b É /ɛ/ be.PRES.3SG assim /ɐˈsĩ/ so mesmo /ˈmeʒmu/ just Quando /ˈkwɐ̃du/ when tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG tiveres /tiˈvɛɾɨʃ/ have.FUT.SUBJ.2SG setenta /sɨˈtẽtɐ/ seventy anos /ˈɐnuʃ/ year.M.PL também /tɐ̃ˈbɐ̃j̃/ also tratas /ˈtɾatɐʃ/ treat.PRES.2SG os /uʃ/ the.M.PL estudantes /ɨʃtuˈdɐ̃tɨʃ/ student.PL por /puɾ/ by tu /tu/ you.NOM.2SG
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Part B: Natural Dialogue with Idiomatic Translation
9.16 Tiago: Olá! Tu és a nova vizinha do terceiro andar? → “Hi! Are you the new neighbour on the third floor?”
9.17 Inês: Sou, sim. Chamo-me Inês. E tu? → “Yes, that’s me. My name’s Inês. And you?”
9.18 Tiago: Eu sou o Tiago. Também és estudante? → “I’m Tiago. Are you a student too?”
9.19 Inês: Sou. Desculpa, não sei se te posso tratar por tu. → “I am. Sorry, I don’t know if I can call you tu.”
9.20 Tiago: Claro que podes! Entre estudantes, toda a gente se trata por tu. → “Of course you can! Among students, everybody says tu.”
9.21 Inês: Ainda bem. E tu conheces a senhoria? → “Good. And do you know the landlady?”
9.22 Tiago: A Dona Lurdes? Com ela não é tu, é “a senhora”. Tem setenta anos. → “Dona Lurdes? With her it’s not tu, it’s ‘a senhora’. She’s seventy.”
9.23 Dona Lurdes: Bom dia! A menina é a Inês, não é? → “Good morning! You’re Inês, aren’t you?”
9.24 Inês: Sou, sim. Muito prazer. A senhora mora cá no prédio? → “Yes, I am. Pleased to meet you. Do you live here in the building?”
9.25 Dona Lurdes: Moro no primeiro andar. Se precisar de alguma coisa, é só bater à porta. → “I live on the first floor. If you need anything, just knock on the door.”
9.26 Dona Lurdes: E tu, Tiago? Já pagaste a renda deste mês? → “And you, Tiago? Have you paid this month’s rent yet?”
9.27 Tiago: Ainda não, Dona Lurdes. Pago amanhã, prometo! → “Not yet, Dona Lurdes. I’ll pay tomorrow, I promise!”
9.28 Dona Lurdes: Tu dizes isso todos os meses! → “You say that every month!”
9.29 Inês: Então ela trata-te por tu, e tu dizes “a senhora”? → “So she calls you tu, and you say ‘a senhora’?”
9.30 Tiago: É assim mesmo. Quando tu tiveres setenta anos, também tratas os estudantes por tu! → “That’s just how it is. When you’re seventy, you’ll call the students tu as well!”
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Part C: Dialogue in Portuguese Only
Tiago: Olá! Tu és a nova vizinha do terceiro andar?
Inês: Sou, sim. Chamo-me Inês. E tu?
Tiago: Eu sou o Tiago. Também és estudante?
Inês: Sou. Desculpa, não sei se te posso tratar por tu.
Tiago: Claro que podes! Entre estudantes, toda a gente se trata por tu.
Inês: Ainda bem. E tu conheces a senhoria?
Tiago: A Dona Lurdes? Com ela não é tu, é “a senhora”. Tem setenta anos.
Dona Lurdes: Bom dia! A menina é a Inês, não é?
Inês: Sou, sim. Muito prazer. A senhora mora cá no prédio?
Dona Lurdes: Moro no primeiro andar. Se precisar de alguma coisa, é só bater à porta.
Dona Lurdes: E tu, Tiago? Já pagaste a renda deste mês?
Tiago: Ainda não, Dona Lurdes. Pago amanhã, prometo!
Dona Lurdes: Tu dizes isso todos os meses!
Inês: Então ela trata-te por tu, e tu dizes “a senhora”?
Tiago: É assim mesmo. Quando tu tiveres setenta anos, também tratas os estudantes por tu!
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Part D: Grammar Notes for the Genre Section
Three forms of address in one staircase: tu between the two students (9.16–9.21), a senhora from Inês to Dona Lurdes (9.24), a menina from Dona Lurdes to Inês (9.23), and tu from Dona Lurdes to Tiago, whom she has known long enough (9.26, 9.28), while Tiago still answers with her title (9.27).
Tu és…? (9.16): a first meeting between young people goes straight to tu. Tu is written out because Tiago is asking who she is.
E tu? (9.17) and E tu, Tiago? (9.26): tu alone, turning the question back.
Também és estudante? (9.18): no tu. Once it is clear who is speaking to whom, the ending -s is enough.
Desculpa (9.19): the tu imperative of desculpar. To Dona Lurdes, Inês would say desculpe, the polite form.
Não sei se te posso tratar por tu (9.19): se pulls te in front of the verb (Section D, rule 7). Tratar por tu is the verb of the whole dialogue: 9.19, 9.20, 9.29, 9.30.
Toda a gente se trata por tu (9.20): toda a gente, “everybody”, is singular in Portuguese: se trata, third person singular.
A menina é a Inês? (9.23) and A senhora mora cá no prédio? (9.24): both polite forms take the third person verb, é and mora, never és or moras.
Se precisar (9.25): the future subjunctive of precisar, third person, because Dona Lurdes is speaking to a menina. To Tiago she would say se precisares.
Já pagaste? (9.26): the tu preterite in -ste, without s.
Trata-te por tu (9.29): te after the verb, with a hyphen, as the European rule requires in a plain statement.
Quando tu tiveres setenta anos (9.30): the future subjunctive of ter after quando, for a future event, as in quando tu chegares (9.11). The main verb is in the present, tratas, with future meaning.
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Tu, te and ti have no accent mark. Neither do teu, tua, contigo.
Tu takes a small letter except at the start of a sentence. In Camões’s line Tu só, tu, puro Amor, it is capitalised only because it opens the line.
Contigo is one word. So are comigo, consigo, connosco (Brazil conosco) and convosco.
Te is joined to the verb with a hyphen: trata-te, vejo-te, lembras-te. In the future and conditional it sits inside the verb with two hyphens: dir-te-ei.
The tu form of the verb is written with -s in all tenses except the preterite: falas, falavas, falarás, fales, falasses, falares; but falaste. És (“you are”) has an accent; es without one is not a Portuguese word.
Deste has two meanings: “you gave” (dar, preterite) and “of this” (de + este). Both are written and said the same: /ˈdeʃtɨ/.
Unstressed vowels in Portugal: final -e is /ɨ/ or nearly silent (podes /ˈpɔdɨʃ/, gente /ˈʒẽtɨ/), final -o is /u/ (prédio /ˈpɾɛdju/), unstressed a is /ɐ/ (senhora /sɨˈɲoɾɐ/).
S at the end of a word or before a voiceless consonant is /ʃ/ in Portugal (és /ɛʃ/, pagaste /pɐˈɡaʃtɨ/); before a voiced consonant it is /ʒ/ (diz-me /ˈdiʒmɨ/, mesmo /ˈmeʒmu/).
R at the start of a word is the strong, throaty /ʁ/: renda /ˈʁẽdɐ/, razão /ʁɐˈzɐ̃w̃/.
The IPA in this lesson gives the standard of Lisbon, with each word said on its own, as the course does throughout.
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✓ Lesson 9 Portuguese complete — tu (you)
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Course Index: [latinum.substack.com/p/index](https://latinum.substack.com/p/index)