Learn some common noun prefixes in Portuguese
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Intro |
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| Michael: What are some noun prefixes in Portuguese? |
| Ana Clara: And why are they useful to know? |
| Michael: At PortuguesePod101.com, we hear these questions often. Sasha Lee studies for her biology exam together with her classmate, Giovana Gomes. She sees an unknown word, and asks, |
| "What does "hipertensão" mean?" |
| Sasha Lee: O que significa hipertensão? |
| Dialogue |
| Sasha Lee: O que significa hipertensão? |
| Giovana Gomes: Significa "hypertension." |
| Michael: Once more with the English translation. |
| Sasha Lee: O que significa hipertensão? |
| Michael: "What does "hipertensão" mean?" |
| Giovana Gomes: Significa "hypertension." |
| Michael: "It means "hypertension." |
Lesson focus |
| Michael: A noun prefix is an affix that we place before the radical in a word, creating a different meaning for that word. The affix can be either a letter or a series of letters. Let's hear some examples: |
| Ana Clara: antebraço, |
| Michael: meaning "forearm." Here, the prefix |
| Ana Clara: ante |
| Michael: is added to give the meaning of "before," "the front part of something." Removing the prefix, we have: |
| Ana Clara: braço, |
| Michael: meaning "arm." |
| Here is one more example: |
| Ana Clara: bisavô, |
| Michael: meaning "great grandfather." In this case, the prefix |
| Ana Clara: bis |
| Michael: gives the meaning of "two" or "two times." It's easy to understand its meaning, as "great grandfather" is "the father of one's grandfather." Therefore, the meaning of "two times (something)." Removing the prefix, we have: |
| Ana Clara: avô, |
| Michael: meaning "grandfather." |
| [Recall 1] |
| Michael: Let's take a closer look at the dialogue. |
| Do you remember how Sasha Lee says "What does "hipertensão" mean?" |
| (pause 4 seconds) |
| Ana Clara: O que significa hipertensão? |
| Michael: In this case, we can see the prefix in the word: |
| Ana Clara: hipertensão, |
| Michael: meaning "hypertension." The prefix |
| Ana Clara: hiper |
| Michael: in a Portuguese noun gives the meaning of "excess" or "exaggeration," which can be easily understood, as "hypertension" is a medical condition in which someone's blood pressure is too high. |
| [Recall 2] |
| Michael: Now, let's take a look at our second sentence. |
| Do you remember how Giovana Gomes says "It means 'hypertension'." |
| (pause 4 seconds) |
| Ana Clara: Significa "hypertension." |
| Michael: In this sentence, Giovana Gomes explains how the word asked about is said in English. In this specific example, the English prefix is also referring to the idea of "excess" or "exaggeration" with "hyper." |
| [Summary] |
| Michael: In this lesson, you've learned that noun prefixes are a letter or a set of letters added before the radical in the word to form another word with a different meaning. Now, let's look at some examples. Our first example is |
| Ana Clara: A aula de hoje vai ser sobre a epiderme. |
| Michael: "Today's class will be about the epidermis." |
| In this example, the word: |
| Ana Clara: epiderme |
| Michael: "epidermis." The prefix |
| Ana Clara: epi |
| Michael: creates the meaning of "upon," "on," "over,," that is easily understood, as "epidermis" is the outer layer of the skin. |
| Michael: The next example is: |
| Ana Clara: Ele sempre faz as coisas com muito entusiasmo! |
| Michael: "He always does things with great enthusiasm!" |
| Here, the word: |
| Ana Clara: entusiasmo, |
| Michael: "enthusiasm," has the prefix |
| Ana Clara: en, |
| Michael: giving the idea of "within" or "in," which is noticeable, as "enthusiasm" can mean "having a strong (inner) interest in something and wanting to be involved in it." |
| Expansion |
| Michael: In some cases, it's necessary to use a hyphen in the noun prefix. |
| Let's check out some prefixes that, when added, always end up in a hyphenated noun: |
| The prefixes |
| Ana Clara: pré-, pró- and pós- |
| Michael: with an accented ending—in this case, acute accent: |
| Ana Clara: pré-história, pró-reitor, pós-graduação |
| Michael: "prehistory," "prorector," "post graduation." |
| Another case is with |
| Ana Clara: ex- and vice- |
| Michael: as in: |
| Ana Clara: ex-almirante, vice-presidente |
| Michael: "ex-admiral," "vice-president." |
| Practice Section |
| Michael: Let's review. Respond to the prompts by speaking aloud. Then, repeat after Ana Clara focusing on pronunciation. |
| Do you remember how Sasha Lee says "What does "hipertensão" mean?" |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ana Clara: O que significa hipertensão? |
| Michael: Listen again and repeat. |
| Ana Clara: O que significa hipertensão? |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ana Clara: O que significa hipertensão? |
| Michael: And do you remember how Giovana Gomes says "It means "hypertension."" |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ana Clara: Significa "hypertension." |
| Michael: Listen again and repeat. |
| Ana Clara: Significa "hypertension." |
| [Beep. Pause 5 seconds.] |
| Ana Clara: Significa "hypertension." |
| Cultural Insight/Expansion |
| Michael: Most prefixes in Portuguese have a Greek or Latin origin. Let's hear some examples of each case: |
| Ana Clara: exportação, |
| Michael: meaning "exportation," has the prefix |
| Ana Clara: ex |
| Michael: that gives the idea of "out" or "forth," as understood in this noun, which is the process of sending goods to another country. |
| The prefix |
| Ana Clara: ex |
| Michael: is one that has a Latin origin. Let's now hear an example of a prefix with a Greek origin used in Portuguese: |
| Ana Clara: A apresentação de hoje vai ser no anfiteatro. |
| Michael: "Today's presentation will be at the amphitheatre." |
| The Portuguese noun: |
| Ana Clara: anfiteatro |
| Michael: Meaning "amphitheatre," has the prefix |
| Ana Clara: anfi |
| Michael: which gives the idea of "around" or "on both sides," as understood in the noun that signifies a theater in which the audience sits around the stage. |
Outro |
| Michael: Do you have any more questions? We're here to answer them! |
| Ana Clara: Até a próxima! |
| Michael: See you soon! |
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