Dar Trabalho: Talk About a Difficult or Time-Consuming Task — Practice

Use dar trabalho for something that takes effort

Dar trabalho can mean to take effort, be difficult, or create extra work. When a task is the subject, the phrase often describes the effort involved: organizar a mudança dá trabalho (organizing the move takes work).

The expression can also mean that someone is causing trouble or requiring attention. In that use, tone and relationship matter; it can sound affectionate about a child or critical about a difficult situation.

Compare dar trabalho with trabalhar

Trabalhar means to work. Dar trabalho focuses on the effort or trouble that something creates for a person. The phrase often uses indirect object pronouns: isso me dá trabalho (that creates work for me) or deu trabalho para a equipe (it took effort for the team).

For a more neutral statement, you can say que tarefa difícil (what a difficult task) or exige muito tempo (it requires a lot of time). Choose a direct description in formal writing.

Remember: Use dar trabalho when an action or situation creates effort or extra work; use trabalhar for the activity of working.

Check your understanding

Choose the English meaning of each Portuguese example. Answer before looking back at the tables. These questions check the written examples in this guide; they are not a listening or proficiency test.

Recall the Portuguese, then say it

Read the English prompt and say a Portuguese version before opening the answer. The answer shows the example from the lesson; other natural translations may also work. Compare the meaning and the situation rather than counting a different word as automatically wrong.

1. Reviewing the whole text takes quite a bit of work.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Revisar o texto inteiro dá bastante trabalho.

2. The move was a lot of work, but it was finished the same day.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   A mudança deu trabalho, mas terminou no mesmo dia.

3. The baby needed a lot of attention during the trip.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   O bebê deu trabalho durante a viagem.

4. This form takes effort because it asks for many documents.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Esse formulário me dá trabalho porque pede muitos documentos.

5. I work from home on Fridays.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   Trabalho de casa às sextas-feiras.

6. The task requires two hours of review.

   Show a Portuguese answer

   A tarefa exige duas horas de revisão.

Make the phrase useful to you

Choose one example you could actually use. Say it once from memory, then change one detail that fits your life, such as the person, place, time, or object. Check whether your change also needs a different verb form, article, or adjective ending. If it does, compare it with the pattern in the explanation.

Use dar trabalho when an action or situation creates effort or extra work; use trabalhar for the activity of working.

Return to two prompts tomorrow without opening the answers first. If a phrase still feels difficult, shorten it to a useful chunk and build the complete sentence again.

Sources and your next lesson

This I Speak Portuguese practice guide builds on our Dar Trabalho: Talk About a Difficult or Time-Consuming Task lesson on Real Life Portuguese, with written recall tasks and additional speaking practice. The explanations and examples are teaching material; the practice questions are exercises, not a transcript of a recording.

To add Brazilian audio to your routine, choose a lesson in the Real Life Portuguese app. The app offers its own lessons and practice; this page does not imply that every example here has an app recording.