A2 (Elementary)Lesson 8: Noun Phrase Expansion
Numbers, words like cada and todo, and quantifiers like algum, nenhum, muito and pouco all help shape the noun phrase.
Numerals count or order
"cada", "todo", "algum", "nenhum" help define reference
"muito/pouco" agree with nouns when used as quantifiers
determiner + noun / numeral + noun / quantifier + noun
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Cardinals count: "dois livros", "três pessoas". Ordinals order: "primeiro dia", "segunda vez".
"Cada" points to items one by one. "Todo/toda" can mean "every" or "whole" depending on the phrase.
"Algum/alguma" usually means "some/any". "Nenhum/nenhuma" means "no/not any".
"Muito/pouco" work as quantifiers and must agree when they modify nouns: "muita gente", "poucas casas".
Portuguese often uses singular after "cada": "cada pessoa", not "cada pessoas".
"Todo dia" and "o dia todo" do not mean the same thing.
| Portuguese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| duas pessoas | two people |
| o primeiro dia | the first day |
| cada pessoa | each person |
| todo dia | every day |
| nenhum problema | no problem |
| muita gente aqui | many people here |
"Todo" changes meaning across patterns such as "todo dia" and "o dia todo".
"Muito" can also work as an adverb, where it does not agree: "estuda muito".
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