A1Lesson 1: Gender, Number & Articles
Indefinite articles are used when referring to something non-specific and must agree in gender and number with the noun.
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Think of indefinite articles as the Portuguese way of saying "a/an" or "some." While English keeps it simple with just "a" and "an," Portuguese likes to be more specific. Every noun in Portuguese has a gender (masculine or feminine) and can be singular or plural, and the indefinite article must match both characteristics.
Used before masculine nouns when talking about one non-specific item.
Used before feminine nouns when talking about one non-specific item.
Used before masculine nouns when talking about "some" items (more than one).
Used before feminine nouns when talking about "some" items (more than one).
Introducing something new: When mentioning something for the first time
Non-specific references: When you're not talking about a particular item
Expressing approximation: With numbers to mean "about/around"
Generalizations: Making general statements
The trickiest part for learners is knowing whether a noun is masculine or feminine. Here are some helpful patterns:
Watch out for exceptions! Some words ending in -a are masculine (um problema, um sistema), and some ending in -o are feminine (uma foto, uma moto).
