Today we continue the topic of how to talk in detail about our work. However, this time we will describe what exactly we do, what kind of environment surrounds us, what our schedule is like, and why we choose this particular company and profession.
To look at the use of vocabulary and grammar in context, we will start by reading the second part of the dialogue between Sofia and Rui. As a reminder, Sofia works as a teacher at a school, while Rui is an administrative assistant at an accounting organization.
Dialogue, Part II
Sofia: E passas o dia todo no escritório? (And do you spend the whole day in the office?)
Rui: Quase todo o dia, sim. Às vezes tenho de ir a reuniões com clientes ou a bancos. E tu, tens de trabalhar muitas horas? (Almost the whole day, yes. Sometimes I have to go to meetings with clients or to banks. And you, do you have to work many hours?)
Sofia: Mais ou menos. Normalmente trabalho até às três da tarde, mas depois tenho de preparar as aulas em casa. E no teu trabalho, tens de comunicar com clientes diretamente? (More or less. I usually work until three in the afternoon, but then I have to prepare lessons at home. And in your job, do you have to communicate with clients directly?)
Rui: Sim, mas não todos os dias. Alguns clientes vêm ao escritório, e às vezes falo com eles por telefone ou e-mail. Tenho de ser organizado para não me perder no meio de tantos documentos. (Yes, but not every day. Some clients come to the office, and sometimes I talk to them by phone or email. I have to be organized so I don’t get lost among so many documents.)
Sofia: Queres trabalhar como assistente administrativo por muitos anos? (Do you want to work as an administrative assistant for many years?)
Rui: Sim, por agora sim. Gosto da área e gostava de crescer na empresa, talvez até como gestor. Mas ainda tenho de aprender mais. (Yes, for now I do. I like the area and would like to grow in the company, maybe even as a manager. But I still have to learn more.)
Sofia: Claro, o importante é que gostas do que fazes. Bom, já é tarde. Tenho de ir. (Of course, the important thing is that you like what you do. Well, it’s already late. I have to go.)
Rui: Tens razão, eu também vou. (You’re right, I will go too.)
Sofia: Bom trabalho amanhã. Até breve! (Have a good day at work tomorrow. See you soon!)
Rui: Obrigado, Sofia! Até breve! (Thank you, Sofia! See you soon!)
Duty and necessity
The first thing we need to pay attention to from a grammatical point of view is the construction that indicates obligation, but not strict. Something in between necessity and obligation – the verb “ter” (to have) and the obligatory preposition “de“, which changes the original meaning of the verb “ter” to “must“.
- Tens de trabalhar 8 horas por dia? (Do you have to work 8 hours a day?)
- Nós temos de seguir as regras. (We have to follow the rules.)
In the dialogue, we only use this option. However, it is completely easy to replace the preposition “de” with the word “que“, and the meaning will not change at all.
- Tenho que chegar ao trabalho antes de todos para verificar o sistema. (I have to arrive at work before everyone to check the system.)
- Ele tem que registar os nossos atrasos. (He has to register our delays.)
- Tem que escolher o seu horário. (You have to choose your schedule.)
But if we want to emphasize that a person must do something according to moral standards, because they borrowed or need to follow certain instructions, then it is necessary to use the verb “dever” (to owe).
- Deves trabalhar mais para seres promovido. (You should work more to get promoted.)
- Devo devolver os documentos da empresa amanhã. (I must return the company’s documents tomorrow.)
Wish, preference
We have already encountered verbs that express our attitude towards something: gostar de (to like), adorar (to adore), amar (to love), preferir (to prefer), odiar (to hate), and so on. These verbs have a rather straightforward meaning.
What if we want to indicate that we would like something, but for now, we are perfectly fine without it? Let’s recall the polite form of address, which is formed using two verbs – gostar (to like) and querer (to want). They need to change their endings according to the rules for the Pretérito Imperfeito tense. Namely:
| Gostar | |
| eu | gostava |
| tu | gostavas |
| ele, ela, você | gostava |
| nós | gostávamos |
| eles, elas, vocês | gostavam |
| Querer | |
| eu | queria |
| tu | querias |
| ele, ela, você | queria |
| nós | queríamos |
| eles, elas, vocês | queriam |
As a result, we get:
- No futuro queria abrir a minha própria empresa. (In the future, I would like to open my own business.)
- Gostavam de continuar como a escola mais popular do país. (They would like to continue as the most popular school in the country.)
The word “todo”
The last thing we will discuss today is the word “todo”, which can be used in two meanings: all/whole or each. Depending on the object it refers to, its gender and number change. It’s best to see how this works in context.
- Ontem fiz todas as tarefas e posso descansar hoje. (Yesterday I did all the tasks and can rest today.)
- Eles trabalharam toda a noite para acabar o projeto ha hora. (They worked all night to finish the project on time.)
- Todos os alunos devem pagar pelo curso para podermos começar. (All students must pay for the course so we can start.)
As you have already understood, all three examples relate to the meaning of “whole.” Structurally, the meaning of “each” is no different. Let’s check:
- Todas as sextas avaliamos os resultados de trabalho por uma semana. (Every Friday we evaluate the results of work for a week.)
- Todos os dias recebo pedidos para dar aulas. (Every day I receive requests to give classes.)
Conclusion
Over time, you will forget these rules and will speak Portuguese intuitively. And while you are still in the process of learning, which will definitely take more than one year of your life, it is useful to return to the basic topics from time to time and refresh your knowledge. You can do this in our classes or with the help of our articles!