If you’re diving into the beautiful world of Portuguese, you’ve probably found out that Portuguese grammar is filled with tricky bits. Don’t worry, though; today I’m on a mission to guide you through the fascinating realm of Portuguese pronouns, from the basics to the nuances.
Pronouns, those little words that stand in for nouns, are like pieces in the jigsaw puzzle of language mosaic. They help you express yourself, make your intentions clear, and navigate conversations with ease.
I’ll take you on a tour through the various types of Portuguese pronouns, from the friendly faces of subject pronouns to the inquisitive interrogatives, and all the possessive, demonstrative, indefinite, and relative pronouns in between.
Portuguese pronouns explained
Subject pronouns
Portuguese subject pronouns are like the actors in a play. They tell us who’s doing the action in a sentence and prevent repetition.
Now, here’s the cool part: Portuguese often drops subject pronouns when it’s clear who’s being talked about from the context or the verb itself. So instead of saying Eu gosto de chocolate (“I like chocolate”), you can just say Gosto de chocolate.
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| eu | I | Eu fui ao teatro ontem. I went to the theater yesterday. |
| tu/você | you [singular] | Tu és bonita. [PT]/Você é bonita. [BR] You are pretty. |
| ele/ela | he/she | Ele/ela está bem. He/she is well. |
| nós | we | Nós nos amávamos. We used to love each other. |
| vós/vocês | you [plural] | Vós acertastes tudo. [PT]/Vocês acertaram tudo. [PT & BR] You (guys) got everything right. |
| eles/elas | they | Eles/elas gostam de dançar. They like to dance. |
The only other thing you should bear in mind here is the form of address you’ll be using: tu and você are informal ways of saying you (when talking to a single person), but as a rule of thumb tu is preferred in Portugal, while você prevails in Brazil.
In the plural, vocês tends to be used in both Portugal and Brazil, as the official plural of tu (i.e. vós) has all but fallen out of use.
In a formal setting, Brazilians tend to use o(s) senhor(es) for men or a(s) senhora(s) for women, while the Portuguese tend to either omit the pronoun or repeat the person’s name.
In all formal scenarios, the conjugation of accompanying verbs will follow the pattern used for você and vocês, which in turn are conjugated like third-person ele(s) and ela(s).
Direct object pronouns
Direct object pronouns in Portuguese replace the objects that receive the action of the verb, making sentences smoother and more concise.
Let’s break it down. When you say those three little words, Eu te amo (i.e. “I love you”), te is the direct object because it’s receiving the action of your love.
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| me | me | A Isabel me ajuda sempre. Isabel always helps me. |
| te/você | you [singular] | Eu te amo. [PT & BR]/Eu amo você. [BR] I love you. |
| o/a | him/her | Nós o/a convidamos para a festa. [PT & BR formal] / Nós convidamos ele/ela para a festa. [BR informal] We invited him/her to the party. |
| nos | us | Pedro nos visitará amanhã. Peter will visit us tomorrow. |
| vos/vocês | you [plural] | Eu não vos queria interromper. [PT]/Eu não queria interromper vocês. [BR] I didn’t mean to interrupt you (guys). |
| os/as | them | A polícia já os/as achou. [PT & BR formal] / A polícia já achou eles/elas. [BR informal] Police have already found them. |
Third-person pronouns o/a (singular) and os/as (plural) change slightly when placed after certain verb forms, as in Vamos vê-las amanhã (“We’ll see them tomorrow”) and Deixaram-no em casa (“They dropped him off at home”).
Also, in an informal conversation, Brazilians tend to replace these same tiny pronouns with their subject counterparts, so the two examples above would be more idiomatically rendered as Vamos ver elas amanhã and Deixaram ele em casa.
Though the subject pronoun vós is rarely used in Portugal, it’s still common to hear its object counterpart vos in conversation across the country.
Indirect object pronouns
Portuguese indirect object pronouns are like personalized delivery addresses—they help specify who or what receives the action indirectly, making your sentences more precise.
Imagine you’re saying, “I gave Maria a book.” In this sentence, “Maria” is the indirect object because she’s receiving the book. Instead of saying Eu dei um livro a Maria, you can say Eu lhe dei um livro (“I gave her a book”).
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| me / mim | (to) me | Meus pais deram-me um presente. [PT]/Meus pais me deram um presente. [BR] My parents gave me a gift. |
| te / ti | (to) you [singular] | Posso oferecer-te uma bebida? [PT]/Posso te oferecer uma bebida? [BR] |
| lhe | (to) him / (to) her | Eu lhe entreguei todos os documentos. I handed you all the documents. |
| nos | (to) us | Heitor nos fez um favor enorme. Hector did us a huge favor. |
| vos/lhes | (to) you [plural] | Nós vos diremos o que pensamos. [PT] / Nós lhes diremos o que pensamos. [BR] We’ll tell you (guys) |
| lhes | (to) them | Ele lhes contou a verdade. He told them the truth. |
I and you are associated with two different indirect object pronouns: me and te are placed before the verb, where mim and ti come after it, as in Eles me/te deram um presente (“They gave me/you a gift”) and Eles deram um presente a mim/ti (“They gave a gift to me/you.”)
Possessive pronouns and adjectives
Portuguese possessive pronouns and adjectives are all about showing ownership, like putting a name tag on what belongs to whom.
Possessive adjectives are the first cousins of English words like “my,” “your,” “his,” “her,” “its,” “our,” and “their.” In Portuguese, they change based on the gender and number of the thing possessed. For example, “my book” is meu livro (masculine), yet “my keys” is minhas chaves (feminine).
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| meu(s)/minha(s) | my or mine | Os turistas gostaram do meu país. The tourists liked my country. Você tem as suas próprias canetas. Devolva as minhas. [BR] You have your own pens. Give mine back. |
| teu(s)/tua(s) | your or yours [singular] | Esqueci o livro. Trouxeste o teu? I forgot my book. Did you bring yours? Tuas mãos são longas. Your hands are long. |
| seu(s)/sua(s) or dele/dela | his/her or hers | Seu nome é Mateus. His name is Matthew. Esse vestido é dela. That dress is hers. |
| nosso(s)/nossa(s) | our or ours | Nosso pai viveu até os 101 anos. Our father lived to 101 years old. A casa dele é aconchegante, mas eu prefiro a nossa. His house is cozy, but I prefer ours. |
| vosso(s)/vossa(s) | your or yours [plural] | Um brinde à vossa saúde! [PT & BR formal] Here’s to your health! Já recolhemos nossos pertences. Agora recolhei os vossos. [PT] We picked up our belongings already. Now pick up yours. |
| seu(s)/sua(s) or deles/delas | their or theirs | Seu carro está estacionado ali. Their car is parked over there. A filha deles é inteligente. Their daughter is smart. |
Now, when it’s time to go full-on pronoun mode, possessive pronouns take the stage. Luckily, though, possessive pronouns in Portuguese are exactly the same as adjectives across all persons.
Demonstrative pronouns and adjectives
Demonstrative pronouns and adjectives in Portuguese are the GPS of the language, helping you pinpoint something in relation to its distance, whether it’s close enough to touch or way over there.
You use them to point out which “this” or “that” you’re talking about. Just like possessive adjectives and pronouns, these little guys change based on gender and number. “This car” would be este carro (masculine), while “those bikes” would be aquelas bicicletas (feminine).
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| este(s)/esta(s) | this (one) or these (ones) [either adjectives or pronouns; close to me] | Este é o meu primo. This is my cousin. Eu não quero aquela camisa; quero esta. I don’t want that shirt; I want this one. |
| isto | this [pronoun only; close to me] | Isto é um sonho. This is a dream. |
| esse(s)/essa(s) | that (one) or those (ones) [either adjectives or pronouns; close to you] | Você jogaria esse lixo fora? [BR] Would you throw that trash away? Essas são as minhas coisas. Those are my things. |
| isso | that [pronoun only; close to you] | Não podes dizer isso. You can’t say that. |
| aquele(s)/aquela(s) | that (one) or those (ones) [either adjectives or pronouns; far from us] | Aquele problema precisa ser resolvido. That problem needs to be solved. A Maria pediu esta bicicleta, não aquela. Mary asked for this bike, not that one. |
| aquilo | that [pronoun only; far from us] | Ela foi expulsa por AQUILO? She was expelled for THAT? |
And just when you thought it couldn’t get more detailed, Portuguese has not two, but three levels of demonstratives. It all depends on the distance: este(s), esta(s), and isto are near me, esse(s), essa(s), and isso are near you, and aquele(s), aquela(s), and aquilo are close to “them”.
In Brazil, however, este(s), esta(s), and isto usually tend to be replaced by esse(s), essa(s), and isso. You’ll often hear the formulas esse aqui (“this one here”) aquele ali (“that one right there”) and aquele lá (“that one over there”) to distinguish between the three distance levels.
Interrogative pronouns and adjectives
Interrogative pronouns and adjectives are the ones you call when you want to ask questions, uncover mysteries, and get to the bottom of things. Luckily (and ironically), there’s hardly any mystery when it comes to how interrogatives work in practice.
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (O) que | what | Que se está a passar aqui? [PT]/O que está acontecendo aqui? [BR] What’s going on here? |
| qual(quais) | which (ones) | Qual carro você compraria? [BR] Which car would you buy? |
| quanto(s)/quanta(s) | how much or how many | Quanto custa este livro? How much does this book cost? Quantos alunos passaram na prova? How many students passed the test? |
| quem | who(m) | Quem deixou as luzes acesas? Who left the lights on? |
But it is worth noting that que (i.e. “what”) is hardly used as a standalone pronoun in conversation—it lacks emphasis. Instead, you’ll hear o que, o que é que, or even o que que in the colloquial register.
Indefinite pronouns and adjectives
Indefinite pronouns and adjectives don’t pinpoint a specific person or thing—they keep it open-ended. Together, they help you navigate conversations when the details are a bit fuzzy.
While the table below features the most common indefinite pronouns in Portuguese, as you go about your studies you’ll learn several more, each for a different nuance of vagueness.
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| algum(alguns)/alguma(algumas) | some | Alguns programas são melhores que os outros. Some shows are better than the rest. Os meus colegas têm alguns defeitos mas muitas qualidades. My coworkers have some faults by many qualities. |
| algo | something | Há algo delicioso a ser preparado na cozinha. [PT] / Tem algo delicioso sendo preparado na cozinha. [BR] There’s something delicious being prepared at the kitchen. |
| alguém | somebody | Ouvi alguém chamar por ti. I heard someone asking for you. |
| nenhum(nenhuns)/nenhuma(nenhumas) | no or none | Nenhum passageiro se feriu no acidente. No passenger was hurt in the accident. Eles não têm provas nenhumas do que dizem. They have no proof of what they’re saying. |
| nada | nothing | Nada os deteve. Nothing stopped them. |
| ninguém | nobody | Ninguém perdeu o aniversário da Ana. Nobody missed Ann’s birthday. |
| todo(s)/toda(s) | every(body) | Todos odeiam o Cris. Everybody hates Chris. Ela ligou para todas as amigas. She called every one of her girl friends. |
| tudo | everything | Conquistaste tudo aquilo com que sonhavas. You achieved everything you dreamed of. |
| cada | each | Desejo sorte a cada um de vocês. I wish luck to each one of you. |
| qualquer/quaisquer | any | Qualquer xícara serve. Any cup will do. Contacte-me caso tenha quaisquer dúvidas. [PT] Contact me if you have any questions. |
Relative pronouns and adjectives
Relative pronouns and adjectives are connectors, the bridge-builders in sentences. They link two related ideas and make language flow more smoothly.
You have a main clause, a sentence with an idea. Then, you want to add more information about something in that clause. That’s where the relative pronoun comes in. It kicks off a new clause, providing extra details, and ties it back to the main one.
| Portuguese | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| que | that or which | Esta é a casa que o Zé construiu. This is the house that Jack built. Nossas plantas, que não precisam de muito sol, sobreviveram. Our plants, which don’t need much sunshine, survived. |
| quem | whom | A diretora de quem te falei estreou um filme novo. The director about whom I told you debuted a new movie. |
| onde | where | A rua onde cresci está toda arborizada agora. The street where I grew up is all lined with trees now. |
| o(s) qual(quais)/a(s) qual(quais) | which | Os bares, dos quais me lembro muito pouco, estavam sempre lotados. The bars, of which I remember very little, were always packed. A mala com a qual eu viajei está em frangalhos. The suitcase with which I traveled is falling to pieces. |
| cujo(s)/cuja(s) | whose | Conhecemos aquele escritor cujos pais eram romenos. We met that writer whose parents were Romanian. |
| quanto(s)/quanta(s) | whatever | Eles acreditam em tudo quanto veem na TV. They believe whatever they see on TV. |
Here, you should remember two things. First, “whom” in Portuguese (i.e. quem) can only be used after a preposition. Otherwise, you should always use either que or o(s) qual(quais) for masculine words and a(s) qual(quais) for feminine ones.
So “The teacher (whom) I met yesterday is brilliant” translates as A professora que [not quem] eu conheci ontem é brilhante.
Second, cujo(s)/cuja(s) (i.e. “whose”) is rare in conversation; you’ll most likely use different sentence structures to express the same idea.
Plus, unlike English, these relative adjectives can never be used as an interrogative. So “Whose pen is this?” would be rendered as De quem é esta caneta? (something like “Of whom is this pen?”
Final thoughts
On this brief but complete journey through the intricacies of Portuguese pronouns, we’ve covered everything from the essential subject pronouns to the curious relatives, helping you unlock the beauty and richness of the language.
Remember, learning Portuguese is not just about taking in new words; it’s also about mastering how to arrange them in order to express meaningful ideas—and pronouns are essential for that.
Before signing off, let me tell you that you’ll need the right resources to navigate Portuguese personal pronouns and all the other categories we’ve seen above. So explore precious tools like apps and grammar books to learn Portuguese, pick your favorite, and get down to work!