Lesson 1. Gender and the definite article: o, a — a noun comes with its article

I can name any object with the right article — o or a — and not guess the gender from the meaning.

A noun comes with its article: o and a

In Portuguese, a noun almost always comes with its article, and the article shows its gender. So learn each word with its article: not “caderno” but o caderno. Keep the article, as English keeps “the”: “The key is Pedro's” is A chave é de Pedro. The thing comes first, then de + the owner. The ending often shows the gender: -o is masculine (o caderno, o livro), -a is feminine (a caneta, a mesa). With -e or a consonant, the word doesn't show it: a chave, o computador. Learn these only with the article. Two endings are always feminine: -agem and -dade — a viagem, a idade, a cidade. Many words in -ma are masculine: o problema. And a few words in -a are masculine: o dia, o mapa. English nouns have no gender, so the English word gives no clue. The table shows six words to learn with their article. Common mistakes: • NOT “Pedro chave” — a chave de Pedro. • NOT “o mesa” — a mesa. • NOT “a problema” — o problema. • NOT “a dia” — o dia. • NOT “o viagem” — a viagem.

Gender by ending and the definite article

A noun is learned with its article: the article is the gender label.

Ending	Gender	Article	Example
-o	masculine	o	o caderno
-a	feminine	a	a caneta
-e and a consonant	depends on the word	o or a	a chave, o computador
-agem, -dade	feminine	a	a viagem, a idade
-ma	masculine	o	o problema
-a in a few words	masculine	o	o dia, o mapa

Gender comes with the word

Six everyday words: the English word gives no clue to the gender.

In English	In Portuguese	Gender
book	o livro	masculine
table	a mesa	feminine
chair	a cadeira	feminine
problem	o problema	masculine
city	a cidade	feminine
map	o mapa	masculine

Lesson notes

A noun comes with its article: o and a

In Portuguese, a noun almost always comes with its article, and the article shows its gender. So learn each word with its article: not “caderno” but o caderno. Keep the article, as English keeps “the”: “The key is Pedro's” is A chave é de Pedro. The thing comes first, then de + the owner. The ending often shows the gender: -o is masculine (o caderno, o livro), -a is feminine (a caneta, a mesa). With -e or a consonant, the word doesn't show it: a chave, o computador. Learn these only with the article. Two endings are always feminine: -agem and -dade — a viagem, a idade, a cidade. Many words in -ma are masculine: o problema. And a few words in -a are masculine: o dia, o mapa. English nouns have no gender, so the English word gives no clue. The table shows six words to learn with their article. Common mistakes: • NOT “Pedro chave” — a chave de Pedro. • NOT “o mesa” — a mesa. • NOT “a problema” — o problema. • NOT “a dia” — o dia. • NOT “o viagem” — a viagem.