Many of the prepositions in this post have many functions. Here we’ll just discuss how to use them as prepositions of place, but you can learn about their other uses from our posts on prepositions of time, prepositions of movement, and prepositions with other uses!
Brazilian Portuguese Articles
How to use prepositions of place in Brazilian Portuguese?
By: Fabiana Dametto Oliveira Thu Dec 12 2024
Brazilian portuguesePrepositions
PrepositionsNo definition set for PrepositionsLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. of place are used in Brazilian Portuguese to build phrases that describe the location of a nounNo definition set for nounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. in relation to something else. In Brazilian Portuguese, the most common prepositions of place are a(at, on, in), em(in, on), and entre(between, among), but some other phrases, like em frente de(in front of), emcima de(on), acima de(above), emaixo de(under), and debaixo de(beneath) can also be used in a similar way. These longer phrases are called “compound prepositions of place.”
In this post, we’ll take you through all the most common prepositions of place in Brazilian Portuguese and discuss when and how to use each one. Ready to go? Keep reading!
Table of Contents
Tip
How to use ‘a’ as a preposition of place?
The preposition a(in, on, at) can be used in certain phrases that describe the general location of something or someone.
Eles estão sentados à mesa.
They are sitting at the table.
Eles estão sentados ao sol.
They are sitting in the sun.
TipContractions of ‘a’
As you may recall, a usually forms a contractionNo definition set for contractionLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. with any definite article — o, os, a, as(the) — that follows it:
a + a → à
feminine singular
a + as → às
feminine plural
a + o → ao
masculine singular
a + os → aos
masculine plural
We only use a as a preposition of place in a few situations. One of the most common uses of a for place is before the words direita(right) and esquerda(left) to indicate a position in space (as in the second example below).
O banheiro fica à direita.
The bathroom is on the right.
We can also say do lado direito(on the right side) or do lado esquerdo(on the left side) to indicate a position in the space:
O banheiro fica do lado direito.
The bathroom is on the right side.
O banheiro fica do lado esquerdo.
The bathroom is on the left side.
How to use ‘em’ as a preposition of place?
Em(in, at, on) is one of the most-used prepositions of place in Brazilian Portuguese, and it appears in three major contexts: to give a general location, to say that something is “inside” something else, or to say that something is on the surface of something else.
Eu estou no escritório.
I am at the office.
→ general locationAs crianças estão na sala ao lado.
The kids are in the next room.
→ insideEle está sentado na cadeira.
He is sitting on the chair.
→ on the surface
In the sections below, we’ll go through these uses one-at-a-time.
Tip
Like a, em will often form contractions with definite articles that follow it:
em + a → na
feminine singular
em + as → nas
feminine plural
em + o → no
masculine singular
em + os → nos
masculine plural
You can also form contractions between em and demonstrative adjectivesNo definition set for demonstrative adjectivesLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. like este(this).
Hoje eu estou trabalhando neste escritório.
Today I am working in this office.
→ em + este → neste
There’s a lot of em + demonstrative contractions, but you can follow the link to view the full list of contractions between prepositions and demonstratives in Brazilian Portuguese!
Important
What’s the difference between a and em?
Em is used with a broad spectrum of locations, and it is always used when something or someone is in physical contact with something else, as in:
Ele está sentado na cadeira.
He is sitting on the chair.
A is a preposition of place in very few cases — basically, when something or someone has no physical contact with something else, but it’s very nearby, as in:
Ele está sentado à mesa.
He is sitting at the table.
Ele está parado à porta.
He is standing at the door.
Using ‘em’ + general location
We use em before someone or something’s general location, such as the city, country, or establishment (shops, businesses, homes etc.) where it can be found.
Ele mora em Barcelona.
He lives in Barcelona.
Ela mora na Itália.
She lives in Italy.
Nós estamos na Ana.
We are at Ana’s (house).
Notice that not every location that follows em will have a definite article before it, so we sometimes use the contracted and sometimes use the uncontracted forms. Here are the rules:
Use no, na, nos, nas (em + definite article) with countries or with generic places (shops, establishments, houses, etc.)
CountriesGeneric Placesna Itália
in Italy
nos Estados Unidos
in the United States
Ele está na praia.
He is at the beach.
Eu estou no supermercado.
I am at the supermarket.
Exception!
A few countries do not require a definite article, so you will use em instead. Review the countries that do and do not require a definite article in our handy table!
Use em (with no article) with cities and to refer to your own house.
CitiesYour HouseEu moro em Nova Iorque.
I live in New York.
Eu moro em São Paulo.
I live in São Paulo.
Eu estou em casa.
I am at home.
Tip
You’ll also use the uncontracted form em if there is an indefinite article after the preposition:
Eu trabalho em um escritório espaçoso.
I work in a spacious office.
Using ‘em’ to mean “in” or “inside”
You can use em to mean “in” or “inside” when one object is physically surrounded by another:
Os livros estão na caixa.
The books are inside the box.
O frango está no forno.
The chicken is in the oven.
Using ‘em’ to mean “on the surface of”
You can use em to mean “on” in the sense that something is “on the surface” of something else, touching it.
O vaso está na mesa.
The vase is on the table.
A almofada está no sofá.
The cushion is on the sofa.
How to use ‘entre’ as a preposition of place?
Entre is used in Brazilian Portuguese to mean both “between” and “among.”
A sala fica entre a cozinha e o quarto.
The living room is between the kitchen and the bedrooms.
O criminoso está entre os inocentes.
The criminal is among the innocents.
What are the compound prepositions of place in Brazilian Portuguese?
Compound prepositions are short phrases that act like prepositions of place, for example: em cima de(on), acima de(above), dentro de(inside of), atrás de(behind), em frente a(in front of), embaixo de(under, beneath) or debaixo de(under, beneath).
A bola está embaixo do banco.
The ball is under the stool.
As you can see, compound prepositions generally end with the preposition de.
Tip
The preposition de usually forms a contractionNo definition set for contractionLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. with any definite article — o, os, a, as(the) — that follows it:
de + a → da
feminine singular
de + as → das
feminine plural
de + o → do
masculine singular
de + os → dos
masculine plural
In this section, we’ll review four compound prepositions, em cima de(on), acima de(above), embaixo de(under, beneath), debaixo de(under, beneath). To see a longer list of prepositions like this with examples, check out our longer list of compound prepositions of place.
How to use the prepositions of place ‘em cima de’ / ‘acima de’
Two of the common compound prepositions of place are em cima de(on) and acima de(above). They are used slightly differently, so let’s look at each:
Em cima de(on) used when something is on top of another thing and in physical contact with it.
O bolo está em cima da mesa.
The cake is on the table.
→ The cake touches the table.Há muito marshmallow em cima do bolo.
There's a lot of marshmallow on top of the cake.
→ The marshmallow touches the cake.
Tip
We often use the phrase por cima de as a synonym for em cima de:
Há muito marshmallow por cima do bolo.
There's a lot of marshmallow on the top of the cake.
As meias estão em cima das calças. / As meias estão por cima das calças.
The socks are on top of the trousers.
These two phrases have the same meaning if you want to show that something is at the highest point on a surface, or that it’s covering something. However, por cima de is more often used as a preposition of movement, so be careful!
Acima de(above) is slightly different. It indicates that something is in a higher position, but there is no physical contact between the items.
O helicóptero está acima do prédio.
The helicopter is above the building.
→ The helicopter does not touch the building.
Tip
The one-word preposition sobre(on, above) can also be used anywhere you can use em cima de, por cima de, or acima de:
O bolo está sobre a mesa.
Há muito marshmallow sobre o bolo.
O helicóptero está sobre o prédio.
How to use the prepositions of place ‘embaixo de’ / ‘debaixo de’
Both embaixo de and debaixo de mean “under” or “beneath” and can be used in the same contexts.
As caixas estão embaixo da cama.
The boxes are under the bed.
Olhe! O gato está debaixo do cobertor.
Look! The cat is under the blanket.
Tip
Por baixo de means “under,” but this is only used when movement is taking place:
O carro passou por baixo da ponte.
The car passed under the bridge.
The word sob is also a preposition of place that means “under,” but it is not used as often as embaixo de or debaixo de.
As caixas estão embaixo da cama. → As caixas estão sob a cama.
The boxes are under the bed.
Important‘Sob’ or ‘sobre’ ?
Because they look so similar, sob(under) and sobre(on) are commonly mistaken by Brazilian speakers. Make sure to keep them straight! See below in which contexts they should be used:
sob = embaixo de(under) | sobre = em cima de(on) |
O gato está sob a mesa. The cat is under the table. | Olhe! O gato está sobre a mesa. Look! The cat is on the table. |
In summary
These are the most common one-word prepositions of place in Brazilian Portuguese:
a → refers to a general location and it can be used in combination with à direita(on the right) and à esquerda(on the left)
em → also refers to a general location, but can also mean “inside” or “on the surface of.” It’s commonly used with the contractions no, na, nos, nas (to mention countries, cities, and general places)
entre → refers to an intermediate position, and it means both “between” or “among”
We also often use compound prepositions of place in Brazilian Portuguese:
em cima de → “on” or “over” (with physical contact)
acima de → “above” or “over” (no physical contact)
embaixo/debaixo de → “under” or “beneath”
Don’t forget to practice the Brazilian Portuguese prepositions of place with these exercises!
