Giving an opinion in Brazilian Portuguese

Level B1

Giving an opinion in Brazilian Portuguese

Two friends are choosing a coffee shop. You will give your view, support it with a reason and illustrate it with prices. In this imagined situation, the two menus list coffee at R$5 here and R$8 at the other shop.

Words for one choice

Achar and pensar mean think in the opinion use taught here: acho and penso mean I think. Cafeteria means coffee shop, café means coffee and cardápio means menu. Barata means cheap, cara means expensive and silenciosa means quiet; these feminine forms agree with cafeteria. Melhor means better, outra means other and esta means this. Real is Brazil’s currency; cinco reais is five reais and oito is eight.

Recover a reason and a comparison

Porque means because and introduces the reason: é mais barata means it is cheaper. Mais + adjective compares a quality; mais barata que a outra means cheaper than the other one, while melhor already means better without mais. Mas means but and introduces a contrast: Mas a outra cafeteria é mais silenciosa means But the other coffee shop is quieter. É means is; a and o are forms of the definite article.

An opinion, a reason and a priced example

Listen to the three cards in order as one short argument. Acho que marks the personal judgment; porque connects it to the lower-price reason. Por exemplo means for example and introduces the coffee prices, a concrete case that supports that reason. The final sentence acknowledges the other shop’s quieter setting. One cheaper drink supports a limited price comparison; it does not establish that every item is cheaper or that this shop is best for everyone.

Three ways to mark your view

Acho que and penso que both introduce an opinion here, followed by a full clause: esta cafeteria é melhor. Que links think to the thought; keep it in these Portuguese models even when English can omit that. Eu, I, can be left unsaid because acho and penso identify the speaker. Na minha opinião means in my opinion and can stand before the clause without adding que. Here achar means think, rather than find a lost object; pensar has other uses, but we practise its opinion use.

Acho que / Penso que esta cafeteria é melhor.

A judgment and information you can check

Na minha opinião, esta cafeteria é melhor is an evaluation: people can value different things. In our supplied menus, coffee is listed at R$5 here and R$8 at the other shop; those are checkable details of this situation. No cardápio means on the menu, custa means costs and na outra cafeteria means at the other coffee shop. Saying acho que does not itself make a claim false, and leaving it out does not prove a claim true. The menu supports the prices, but it does not show which shop is quieter.

Choose a different priority

Before reading the first model below, choose the other shop because quiet matters more to you, while acknowledging its higher price; keep both menu prices unchanged. Use na minha opinião, melhor, porque, mais silenciosa and mas é mais cara, then give the two prices with por exemplo. Compare your version with the model and listen again. For a further version, change the two prices yourself and choose either shop, giving one reason and one compatible example. Check that your listener can distinguish your choice, your reason and the supplied price information.

View → reason → concrete example

Use acho que or penso que to introduce your view, or put na minha opinião before the clause. Add porque for a reason and por exemplo for a specific supporting case; mas can acknowledge a contrasting advantage. Keep a personal judgment such as melhor separate from the details a source actually provides.

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