The Portuguese Preposition Em

The Portuguese preposition em is chiefly a preposition of place, but can also refer to time. Depending on the context, it can translate to in, on, or at in English.

Also, em form common contractions by combining with other words, namely articles and demonstratives.

Let’s start with contractions and then move to usage.

Contractions

With Articles

definite articles

no
(em + o)

na
(em + a)

nos
(em + os)

nas
(em + as)

indefinite articles

num
(em + um)

numa
(em + uma)

nuns
(em + uns)

numas
(em + umas)

🔎 Learn more about Portuguese Articles.

With Demonstratives

isto, este, esta

nisto
(em + isto)

neste
(em + este)

nesta
(em + esta)

isso, esse, essa

nisso
(em + isso)

nesse
(em + esse)

nessa
(em + essa)

aquilo, aquele, aquela

naquilo
(em + aquilo)

naquele
(em + aquele)

naquela
(em + aquela)

🔎 Learn more about Portuguese Demonstratives.

With Indefinite Pronouns

outro, outra

noutro
(em + outro)

noutra
(em + outra)

algum, alguma, alguém

nalgum
(em + algum)

nalgum
(em + alguma)

nalguém
(em + alguém)

🔎 Learn more about Portuguese Indefinite Pronouns.

Usage

Place

We use em primarily as a preposition of place. Depending on the situation, it can correspond to in, on, or at:

O dinheiro está na carteira.
The money is in the wallet.

Ela está no aeroporto.
She is at the airport.

O livro está na mesa.
The book is on the table.

We usually use the plain em with cities and the contracted form (no, na, nos, nas) with countries. Cities are typically gender-neutral in Portuguese, while countries have a grammatical gender:

Eu trabalho em Lisboa.
I work in Lisbon.

Ela vive na Dinamarca.
She lives in Denmark.

There are a few exceptions, though. Some cities like Porto or Rio de Janeiro (o Porto, o Rio de Janeiro) will call for the article, whereas a few countries like Portugal or Moçambique are gender-neutral:

Estou a viver no Porto.
I am living in Porto.

Passei férias em Moçambique.
I spent the holidays in Mozambique.

💡Special case. When casa means our home, no contraction is needed:

Estou em casa
I am at home.

Time

We also use em to talk about time — specifically years, seasons, months, and specific dates. Take a look at the following dialogue:

– Em que ano nasceste? (Which year were you born?)

– Em 1995. (In 1995.)

– Em que mês? (In which month?)

– Em abril. (In April.)

– Então foi na primavera! (It was spring then!)

We also use em before weekdays for specific, one-off events:

Na terça-feira vamos ao cinema.
On Tuesday, we are going to the movies.

Neste domingo há uma festa.
This Sunday there’s a party.

Verbs Followed by Em

Some verbs naturally pair with em. Here are some key ones:

Morar/Viver (to live)
- A minha prima mora no Canadá.
  My cousin lives in Canada.
Sentar-se (to sit down)
- Sentámo-nos naquela varanda antiga.
  We sat on that old balcony.
Deitar (to pour)
- Deitei o vinho no copo.
  I poured the wine into the glass.
Entrar (to enter)
- Entrámos no edifício principal.
  We entered the main building.
Pensar (to think)
- Ele pensa muito em viajar pelo mundo.
  He thinks a lot about traveling the world.
Hesitar (to hesitate)
- Não hesitei em aceitar o convite.
  I didn’t hesitate to accept the invitation.

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