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Lesson 2. Prepositions with articles: the contractions no, na, do, da, ao, à, pelo
I can join a preposition and an article into one word — no, na, do, da, ao, à, pelo, num — and say which country I live in: “no Brasil”, but “em Portugal”.
Preposition and article: one word
Preposition and article: one word
In Portuguese, a preposition and an article join into one word, a contraction. It isn't the speaker's choice but a rule: “em” + “o” = no, “de” + “a” = da, “a” + “o” = ao, “por” + “o” = pelo. English writes “in the”, “of the” as two words; Portuguese never does. The full table is next to this text.
With the indefinite article, only “em” and “de” join: “em” + “um” = num, “em” + “uma” = numa, “de” + “um” = dum. The familiar forms “numa escola” and “num hospital” are exactly these; “na Rússia” is “em” + “a”.
“a” + “a” = “à”: written with an accent mark and said as one long a. In writing the checker doesn't see this mark — it reads it as a plain “a” — so these tasks are done by choice.
Countries: some names include the article (“o Brasil”, “a Rússia”), others don't (“Portugal”, “Angola”). Hence “no Brasil”, but “em Portugal”. This is learned with each name: English helps only with the United States.
“em casa” means “at home”, with no article; “a casa” is the building.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Moro em a cidade” → “Moro na cidade.”
• NOT “Sou de o Porto” → “Sou do Porto.”
• NOT “no Portugal” → “em Portugal.”
• NOT “A Inês está na casa” meaning “she's at home” → “A Inês está em casa.”
The preposition and the article become one word
With the indefinite article, only em and de contract.
| Preposition | + o / um | + a / uma | + os / uns | + as / umas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| em | no | na | nos | nas |
| de | do | da | dos | das |
| a | ao | à | aos | às |
| por | pelo | pela | pelos | pelas |
| em (indef.) | num | numa | nuns | numas |
| de (indef.) | dum | duma | duns | dumas |
Countries with and without the article
Portuguese is the official language of nine countries on four continents, and in half of their names the article is part of the word.
| The article is part of the name | No article |
|---|---|
| o Brasil → no Brasil | Portugal → em Portugal |
| a Rússia → na Rússia | Angola → em Angola |
| a França → na França | Moçambique → em Moçambique |
| os Estados Unidos → nos Estados Unidos | Cabo Verde → em Cabo Verde |
Lesson notes
Preposition and article: one word
In Portuguese, a preposition and an article join into one word, a contraction. It isn't the speaker's choice but a rule: “em” + “o” = no, “de” + “a” = da, “a” + “o” = ao, “por” + “o” = pelo. English writes “in the”, “of the” as two words; Portuguese never does. The full table is next to this text.
With the indefinite article, only “em” and “de” join: “em” + “um” = num, “em” + “uma” = numa, “de” + “um” = dum. The familiar forms “numa escola” and “num hospital” are exactly these; “na Rússia” is “em” + “a”.
“a” + “a” = “à”: written with an accent mark and said as one long a. In writing the checker doesn't see this mark — it reads it as a plain “a” — so these tasks are done by choice.
Countries: some names include the article (“o Brasil”, “a Rússia”), others don't (“Portugal”, “Angola”). Hence “no Brasil”, but “em Portugal”. This is learned with each name: English helps only with the United States.
“em casa” means “at home”, with no article; “a casa” is the building.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Moro em a cidade” → “Moro na cidade.”
• NOT “Sou de o Porto” → “Sou do Porto.”
• NOT “no Portugal” → “em Portugal.”
• NOT “A Inês está na casa” meaning “she's at home” → “A Inês está em casa.”