Housework
Vocabulary
- limparto clean
- arrumarto tidy up
- cozinharto cook
- lavar a louçato wash the dishes
- aspirarto vacuum
- passar a ferroto iron
- estender a roupato hang out the laundry
- varrerto sweep
- lixotrash / rubbish
- deitar forato throw away
Talking About Household Chores
Costumar + Infinitive (Usual Actions)
Costumar expresses habitual actions:
- Costumo limpar a casa ao sábado. — I usually clean the house on Saturdays.
- Ela costuma cozinhar à noite. — She usually cooks in the evening.
Já / Ainda não (Already / Not Yet)
To talk about completed or pending chores:
- Já lavei a louça. — I already washed the dishes.
- Ainda não arrumei o quarto. — I haven't tidied the bedroom yet.
Ter de + Infinitive for Obligations
- Tenho de aspirar a sala. — I have to vacuum the living room.
- Temos de deitar fora o lixo. — We have to take out the trash.
Reflexive Verbs in Chores Context
Some actions use reflexive constructions:
- Vou vestir-me. — I'm going to get dressed.
- Ele vai deitar-se cedo. — He's going to bed early.
Expressions
- Já arrumei o quarto.I already tidied the bedroom
- Ainda não passei a ferro.I haven't ironed yet — Saying what's still pending
- Podes ajudar-me a limpar?Can you help me clean?
- É a tua vez de cozinhar.It's your turn to cook — Dividing household tasks
- Tens de deitar o lixo fora.You have to take out the trash — Assigning a chore
- Costumo varrer a cozinha.I usually sweep the kitchen — Describing a routine
Common mistakes
Já limpei a cozinha ontem.Limpei a cozinha ontem.Don't use já with a specific past time (ontem) — já implies 'by now'
Costumo a limpar a casa.Costumo limpar a casa.Costumar takes the infinitive directly — no preposition a needed
Tenho de deitar o lixo.Tenho de deitar fora o lixo.Deitar alone means to lay down; deitar fora means to throw away
Vou me vestir.Vou vestir-me.In European Portuguese, the pronoun goes after the infinitive: vestir-me, not me vestir
Ainda não limpo o quarto.Ainda não limpei o quarto.With ainda não (not yet), use the pretérito perfeito (limpei), not the present
Quick quiz
Question 1 of 5
How do you say “to vacuum” in Portuguese?
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