Você Fala or Tu Falas? Recognise the Person and Verb — Practice
A guided practice lesson with English explanations, Brazilian Portuguese examples, and answers you can check. Read the examples, recall the meaning, then say a version of your own.
Read the pronoun and the verb together
This worksheet is for recognising a sentence pattern. For choosing an address form, regional context and politeness, use the main Tu vs. Você reference linked below. Here you identify who is being addressed and which verb form appears.
Você fala and tu falas both address one person. Vocês falam addresses more than one. These standard examples use falar in the present. Do not decide how many people are addressed from the final letter alone.
| Brazilian Portuguese | English meaning |
|---|---|
| Você fala português? | Do you speak Portuguese? — one addressee |
| Tu falas português? | Do you speak Portuguese? — one addressee, standard tu agreement |
| Vocês falam português? | Do you all speak Portuguese? — multiple addressees |
Recognise a spoken form without rewriting the speaker
Tu fala also occurs in Brazilian speech. Its verb differs from the traditional standard tu falas pairing; it does not mean that tu has become a plural pronoun. Treat this as recognition practice rather than a requirement to imitate every form you encounter.
For your own formal standard exercise, keep the requested pattern: você fala, tu falas, vocês falam. In listening, record the form actually used and the context. The main reference explains why a single map or an always/never rule is not enough.
| Brazilian Portuguese | English meaning |
|---|---|
| Tu fala português? | Do you speak Portuguese? — a spoken regional pattern, one addressee |
Transform the question while keeping its message
Change Você quer um café? to standard tu agreement: Tu queres um café? The question still addresses one person. Then change the addressees to a group: Vocês querem um café?
For an answer about yourself, change the person again: Quero, sim means yes, I do. Do not simply copy queres from the question. This exercise changes the grammatical person, not the politeness or identity of a fictional speaker.
| Brazilian Portuguese | English meaning |
|---|---|
| Tu queres um café? | Do you want a coffee? — standard tu agreement |
| Vocês querem um café? | Do you all want a coffee? |
| Quero, sim. | Yes, I do. |
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.
Choose the language for the situation
Now use the explanation to decide what fits the situation. Check the reason for the answer, not just the option you chose.
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.
Do you speak Portuguese? — one addressee
Show a Portuguese answer
Você fala português?
Do you speak Portuguese? — one addressee, standard tu agreement
Show a Portuguese answer
Tu falas português?
Do you all speak Portuguese? — multiple addressees
Show a Portuguese answer
Vocês falam português?
Do you speak Portuguese? — a spoken regional pattern, one addressee
Show a Portuguese answer
Tu fala português?
Do you want a coffee? — standard tu agreement
Show a Portuguese answer
Tu queres um café?
Do you all want a coffee?
Show a Portuguese answer
Vocês querem um café?
Yes, I do.
Show a Portuguese answer
Quero, sim.
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.
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 Você vs. Tu in Brazilian Portuguese: Meaning, Grammar, and Regional Use 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.
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