Brazilian portugueseQuantifiers, Pronouns Quantifiers are words like cada(each) or puoco(few) that accompany or replace 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. and are used to provide information related to its quantity. Most of the quantifiers in Brazilian Portuguese agreeNo definition set for agreeLorem 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 the noun they modify or replace in gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular and plural), as in: todas as pessoas(all people), but some quantifiers are invariable, like cada(each), or agree in gender only or number only.
Quantifiers in Brazilian Portuguese can describe quantity in different ways. Some describe 100% or 0% of a group, some describe a vague or general quantity, some give an exact quantity, and so on. If you want to know more about quantifiers and how to use them, keep reading this post!
What are the types of quantifiers in Brazilian Portuguese?
In Brazilian Portuguese, there are five types of quantifiers: universal, existential, numeral, interrogative, and relative. Quantifiers can have two different functions, as adjectivesNo definition set for 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. or as pronounsNo definition set for pronounsLorem 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.. Some quantifiers can perform both functions, others only one. For example:
quantifying adjectivenoun
Todos os convidados compareceram à reunião.
All guests attended the meeting.
→ If it comes before a noun, it’s an adjective.
quantifying pronoun
Todos compareceram à reunião.
All attended the meeting.
→ If it is used in place of a noun, it’s a pronoun.
Each type is used to express a specific notion of quantity. Let’s take a look below at each.
What are universal quantifiers?
Universal quantifiers are used to refer to all, every, each, or the absence of something (100% or 0%). As you can see in the table below, some universal quantifiers can be used as pronouns or adjectives, while others can only be used as adjectives. Also pay attention to the differences in agreement patterns between the various words:
Pronoun
and
adjective | | | | | |
|---|
| | | | |
| | | | |
Adjective | | | | | |
|---|
| | | | |
*These forms are rarely used in Brazilian Portuguese.
Let’s go through them one-by-one to see some examples:
Todo(all) can function as an adjective or as a pronoun, and in both uses its gender and number depend on the noun it refers to or modifies:
Todos os convidados compareceram à reunião.
All guests attended the meeting.
Todos compareceram à reunião.
All attended the meeting.
Nenhum(none) can also function as an adjective or a pronoun and varies according to the gender and number of the noun it refers to or modifies.
Speaker A:Você conhece algum mecânico na cidade?
Do you know any mechanic in town?
Speaker B:Não conheço nenhum mecânico. / Não conheço nenhum.
I don’t know any mechanic. / I don’t know any.
The plural forms nenhuns and nenhumas are rarely used in Brazilian Portuguese. Instead, we usually just use the singular form for both the noun and the quantifier.
The formal way of forming agreement with the plural noun amigos(friends) would be:
Não consegui encontrar nenhuns amigos ontem.
I couldn’t find any friends yesterday.
However, Brazilians would prefer to use the singular form along with a singular noun, instead, as in nenhum amigo, which literally means “no/any friend,” but means the same thing.
Não consegui encontrar nenhum amigo ontem.
I couldn’t find any friends yesterday.
Ambos/ambas(both) can also function as adjectives or pronouns, but ambos/ambas only exists in the plural.
Ambos os alunos foram premiados.
Both students were awarded.
Speaker A:Você conhece a Maria e o Miguel?
Do you know Maria and Miguel?
Speaker B:Sim, ambos são meus amigos.
Yes, both are my friends.
Although the expressions ambos os dois(both of them) and ambas as duas(both of them) are considered redundant and should be avoided, they are often used in everyday language.
Speaker A:Você conhece a Maria e o Miguel?
Do you know Maria and Miguel?
Speaker B:Sim, ambos os dois são meus amigos.
Yes, both of them are my friends.
Qualquer(any, whatever) only functions as an adjective, preceding a noun, and it only has one singular and one plural form. It does not change with the gender of the noun.
Você pode usar qualquer um desses instrumentos.
You can use any of these instruments.
Você pode usar quaisquer instrumentos que quiser.
You can use whatever instruments you like.
The expression qualquer que seja means “whatever it is.”
Qualquer que seja a sua decisão, eu vou te apoiar.
Whatever your decision is, I will support you.
Cada(each, every) is invariable. It only exists in the singular form and does not vary in gender. It always accompanies a noun and functions as an adjective.
Cada dia aprendo algo novo no trabalho.
Each day I learn something new at work.
Cada can be used in the following expressions:
a cada, which means “every,” and is followed by an expression of time
Eu viajo para o Brasil a cada dois anos.
I travel to Brazil every two years.
cada um and cada qual, which mean “each one”
Cada um sabe o que fazer.
Each one knows what to do.
Cada picks out all the individuals or all of the individual parts of the whole thing, as in:
Cada pedaço de bolo tem um sabor diferente.
Each piece of cake has a different flavor.
Todo generalizes, and can mean “the entire,” as in:
Todo bolo tem um único sabor.
The entire cake has only one flavor.
What are existential quantifiers?
Existential quantifiers don’t describe the exact amount of something, but describe the quantity in imprecise terms, and can therefore give you some information about how much/many are under discussion. Most of them can be either adjectives or pronouns. As you can see in the table below, existential quantifiers also follow slightly varying agreement rules.
Let’s go through them one at a time:
Both muito(many, a lot) and pouco(few, a little) can function as a pronoun or an adjective, either preceding or substituting a noun. Muito and pouco vary in gender and number with the noun they replace or modify.
A empresa vendeu muitos produtos este ano.
The company sold a lot of products this year.
Speaker A:Você leu muitos ou poucos livros sobre publicidade?
Have you read many or few books about advertising?
Pouco(few, a little) can also be used to form the following expressions:
pouco a pouco and aos poucos, which mean “little by little”:
Pouco a pouco, ele vai aprender tudo o que precisa.
Little by little, he will learn everything he needs.
um pouco means “a little” or “a bit”:
Você precisa de só um pouco de fermento para a receita.
You only need a bit of yeast for the recipe.
muito pouco means “a little bit” or “very short”:
Ele está morando aqui por muito pouco tempo.
He’s living here for a very short time.
por pouco means “almost”:
Por pouco não perdemos o trem.
We almost missed the train.
pouca vergonha means “shame” and “embarrassing”:
Eu achei o comportamento do Miguel uma pouca vergonha.
I found Miguel’s behavior a little embarrassing.
When tanto(so much/many) is a quantifier, it mostly functions as an adjective, varying in gender and number with the noun it accompanies, however it can also be an indefinite pronoun in Brazilian Portuguese. It has a similar meaning to muito(s) or muita(s) but is more intense.
Marcelo tem tanta experiência na área.
Marcelo has so much experience in the area.
Vieram tantas pessoas para o curso que fiquei surpresa.
So many people came to the course that I was surprised.
Tanto (in the masculine, singular form) can also function as an intensifying adverb, modifying verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. Here it has the same meaning: “so much.”
Choveu tanto ontem que nem acreditei.
It rained so much yesterday that I couldn't believe it.
Algum(some, any) works as a pronoun or an adjective, replacing or preceding a noun. It varies in both gender and number.
Algumas pessoas te procuraram ontem.
Some people looked for you yesterday.
Speaker A:Você tem livros sobre ecologia?
Do you have any books on ecology?
Vários várias (many, several) only have a masculine plural and a feminine plural form. These two forms can work as a pronoun or an adjective, replacing or preceding a noun.
Tentei várias vezes te ligar, mas você não me atendeu.
I tried several times to call you, but you didn’t answer.
Speaker A:Quantos salgados você comprou pra festa?
How many snacks did you buy for the party?
Bastante(enough, many) functions as an adjective or pronoun and only varies in number. It is used to express big, but indeterminate quantities.
Já conversei com bastantes pessoas.
I already talked to many people.
Ontem, na feira, comprei bastantes (frutas).
Yesterday, at the fair, I bought many (fruits).
In everyday language, Brazilians prefer to use the singular form bastante, instead of the plural form, even if they are describing a plural noun. So they would say:
singularplural
Já conversei com bastante pessoas.
I already talked to many people.
Alternatively, they might change out the plural noun pessoas(people) for singular synonym gente(people) to keep the same meaning and be able to use the singular bastante.
singular
Já conversei com bastante gente.
I already talked to many people.
Bastante can also be used as an adverb, modifying the meaning of a verb, another adverb, or an adjective.
Estou satisfeita, pois comi bastante no almoço.
I am satisfied, because I ate a lot for lunch.
What are numeral quantifiers?
Numeral quantifiers are also known as numbers! They express an exact quantity instead of an imprecise one. They can be variable or invariable, and function as nouns or adjectives.
Comprei dois livros ontem na feira.
I bought two books yesterday at the fair.
Hoje vieram o dobro de alunos.
Today twice as many students came.
Check out our post on using cardinal, ordinal, multiplicative, or fractional numbers in Brazilian Portuguese to learn more!
What are interrogative quantifiers?
Interrogative quantifiers are question words in Brazilian Portuguese that are used to ask about quantity. The most common interrogative quantifier is quanto, which is variable and can function as an adjective.
Speaker A:Quantas horas você trabalhou ontem?
How many hours did you work yesterday?
In some very specific contexts, the relative pronounNo definition set for relative pronounLorem 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. que(what, that) can function as an interrogative quantifier, as long as the question implies a quantifier in the answer:
Speaker A:Which fruits did you buy?
What are relative quantifiers?
Some relative pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese can also function as quantifiers. In this case, they express a quantification of the noun they modify, agreeing with it in gender and number.
Quanto(as... as) indicates an indeterminate quantity.
Vou ler quantos livros puder nestas férias.
I’m going to read as many books as I can this vacation.
Quantocan be accompanied by another quantifier, as in:
Vou ler tantos livros quantos puder nestas férias.
I’m going to read as many books as I can this vacation.
The extra quantifier tantos can be omitted from the phrase. In this case, you need to change the position of the noun, so it always is placed after a quantifier.
Summary
In this post, we talked about quantifiers in Brazilian Portuguese. We saw that there are four types of quantifiers.
Universal quantifiers, such as todo(all), are used to refer to the globality of the elements in a group.
Existential quantifiers, such as muito(many), give the notion of existence and quantity, without referring to a totality.
Numeral quantifiers, such as dobro(double, two times), express the precise quantity of something (cardinal numbers), the multiple of a quantity (multiplicative numeral), or a precise fraction of a quantity (fractional numeral).
Interrogative quantifiers, such as quanto(how many), introduce a question related to the quantity of the noun they accompany.
Relative quantifiers, such as quanto(as... as), express the idea of total quantity in relation to the noun it precedes.
We also saw that the quantifiers above can be variable in gender and number with the noun they modify/replace (pouco(a few)), while others may only vary in one quality (bastante(s)(enough, many)) or may not vary at all (cada(each)).
To review what you’ve read in this article, check out our Brazilian Portuguese quantifier study sheet. Or, why don’t you practice your new knowledge of quantifiers in Brazilian Portuguese with some activities?
To embark on your next language adventure, join Mango on social!
