O Novo Hobby do Sr. Armando
O Sr. Armando reformou-se e começa a aprender a pintar em Coimbra — e descobre que nunca é tarde para começar algo novo.
começar—to begin / to startRead this in the PortuStories app
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Story opening — Portuguese with English Translation
O Sr. Armando reformou-se em janeiro, depois de trinta e cinco anos como professor de matemática numa escola secundária em Coimbra. Na primeira semana em casa, leu jornais, viu televisão, e passeou pelo jardim. Mas na segunda semana, começou a sentir-se inquieto. — Preciso de começar qualquer coisa — disse à sua mulher, a D. Rosa.
Mr Armando retired in January, after thirty-five years as a mathematics teacher at a secondary school in Coimbra. In the first week at home, he read newspapers, watched television, and walked in the garden. But in the second week, he began to feel restless. — I need to start something — he said to his wife, D. Rosa.
A D. Rosa sorriu. Ela sabia que o marido era uma pessoa ativa e que não conseguia ficar parado. — Então começa um hobby, Armando. Sempre disseste que querias aprender a pintar. Porque não começas agora? O Sr. Armando pensou. Era verdade — desde novo que achava a pintura fascinante, mas nunca tinha tido tempo para a explorar.
D. Rosa smiled. She knew her husband was an active person who couldn't stay still. — Then start a hobby, Armando. You always said you wanted to learn to paint. Why not start now? Mr Armando thought. It was true — since he was young he had found painting fascinating, but he had never had time to explore it.
The remaining 9 paragraphs are in the reader, with audio for every sentence and tap-to-translate on every word.
Vocabulary Glossary
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| começar | to begin / to start |
| começo | I begin (1st person singular present of começar) |
| começas | you begin (2nd person singular present of começar) |
| começa | begins (3rd person singular present of começar) |
| começamos | we begin (1st person plural present of começar) |
| começam | they begin (3rd person plural present of começar) |
| comecei | I began (1st person singular past of começar) |
| começaste | you began (2nd person singular past of começar) |
| começou | began (3rd person singular past of começar) |
| começámos | we began (1st person plural past of começar) |
| começaram | they began (3rd person plural past of começar) |
| começava | used to begin / was beginning (past imperfect of começar) |
| reformar-se | to retire (from work) |
| reformou-se | retired (past of reformar-se) |
| reforma | retirement / pension |
| professor | teacher (masculine) |
| matemática | mathematics |
| escola secundária | secondary school / high school |
| trinta e cinco | thirty-five |
| janeiro | January |
| primeiro/a | first |
| segunda | second (feminine) |
| jornais | newspapers |
| televisão | television |
| ver televisão | to watch television |
| passear | to stroll / to go for a walk |
| passeou | strolled (past of passear) |
| jardim | garden |
| sentir-se | to feel (oneself) |
| inquieto/a | restless / uneasy |
| preciso de | I need / need to (1st person singular present of precisar) |
| precisar | to need |
| qualquer coisa | something / anything |
| mulher | wife / woman |
| ativo/a | active |
| conseguia | was able to / managed to (past imperfect of conseguir) |
| conseguir | to manage to / to be able to |
| parado/a | still / motionless / idle |
| hobby | hobby / pastime |
| disseste | you said (2nd person singular past of dizer) |
| queria | wanted (past imperfect of querer) |
| pintar | to paint |
| pintava | used to paint / was painting (past imperfect of pintar) |
| pintou | painted (past of pintar) |
| verdade | truth / true |
| desde novo | since he was young / since youth |
| achava | thought / found (past imperfect of achar) |
| achar | to think / to find / to consider |
| fascinante | fascinating |
| tido | had (past participle of ter) |
| explorar | to explore |
| seguinte | following / next |
| loja | shop / store |
| centro | centre / downtown |
| comprou | bought (past of comprar) |
| tintas | paints (noun plural) |
| tinta acrílica | acrylic paint |
| pincéis | paintbrushes (plural) |
| pincel | paintbrush |
| tela | canvas (for painting) |
| cavalete | easel |
| vendedor | shop assistant / seller (masculine) |
| jovem | young person / young (adjective) |
| barba | beard |
| barbas | beard (colloquial plural) |
| artístico/a | artistic |
| ar | air / look / demeanour |
| senhor | sir / Mr / gentleman |
| setenta e dois | seventy-two |
| sorriso | smile (noun) |
| instalou | installed / set up (past of instalar) |
| instalar | to install / to set up |
| sala | living room |
| colocou | placed / put (past of colocar) |
| colocar | to place / to put |
| abriu | opened (past of abrir) |
| abrir | to open |
| branco | white / blank |
| vinte | twenty |
| minutos | minutes |
| sabia | knew (past imperfect of saber) |
| pegou | grabbed / took hold of (past of pegar) |
| pegar | to grab / to take hold of |
| mergulhou | dipped / plunged (past of mergulhar) |
| mergulhar | to dip / to plunge |
| azul | blue |
| risco | line / stroke / mark |
| horizontal | horizontal |
| mar | sea |
| pintura | painting (artwork or action) |
| pinturas | paintings |
| imperfeito/a | imperfect / flawed |
| cores | colours |
| misturaram-se | mixed (past of misturar-se) |
| misturar | to mix |
| estranha | strange / odd (feminine) |
| estranho/a | strange / odd |
| horizonte | horizon |
| torto/a | crooked / askew |
| desanimado/a | discouraged / disheartened |
| entusiasmado/a | enthusiastic / excited |
| pelo contrário | on the contrary |
| início | beginning / start (noun) |
| alunos | students / pupils |
| cometem | commit / make (3rd person plural present of cometer) |
| erros | mistakes / errors |
| ensina | teaches (3rd person singular present of ensinar) |
| ensinar | to teach |
| amanhã | tomorrow |
| sugeriu | suggested (past of sugerir) |
| sugerir | to suggest |
| inscrevesse | enrolled / signed up (past subjunctive of inscrever) |
| inscrever-se | to enroll / to sign up |
| frequentar | to attend / to frequent |
| centro cultural | cultural centre |
| terças-feiras | Tuesdays |
| quintas-feiras | Thursdays |
| professora | teacher (feminine) |
| chamava-se | was called / was named (past imperfect of chamar-se) |
| quarenta | forty |
| entrar | to enter / to come in |
| simpatia | warmth / friendliness |
| bem-vindo/a | welcome |
| nunca é tarde | it is never too late |
| turma | class / group of students |
| havia | there was / there were (past of haver) |
| seis | six |
| mulheres | women (plural) |
| de meia-idade | middle-aged |
| rapaz | boy / young man |
| universitário/a | university (adjective) / university student |
| senhora | lady / Mrs / madam |
| idosa | elderly (feminine) |
| casal | couple |
| canadianos | Canadians (masculine plural) |
| meses | months (plural) |
| rapidamente | quickly / rapidly |
| sentiu | felt (past of sentir) |
| sentir | to feel |
| fazia parte | was part of (past of fazer parte) |
| grupo | group |
| também | also / too |
| depois de | after |
| setenta e cinco | seventy-five |
| medo | fear |
| idade | age |
| respondeu | replied (past of responder) |
| responder | to reply / to answer |
| energia | energy |
| nova | young / new (feminine) |
| precisava | needed (past imperfect of precisar) |
| isso | that / that thing |
| viver | to live |
| maneira | way / manner |
| ao fim de | after / at the end of |
| dois meses | two months |
| pintadas | painted (feminine plural past participle of pintar) |
| progredir | to progress / to advance |
| estilo | style |
| próprio/a | own / one's own |
| estilo próprio | one's own style |
| repare | look at / notice (imperative of reparar) |
| característico/a | characteristic / distinctive |
| março | March |
| organizou | organised (past of organizar) |
| organizar | to organise |
| pequena | small (feminine) |
| exposição | exhibition / show |
| expôs | exhibited (past of expor) |
| expor | to exhibit / to display |
| paisagem | landscape / scenery |
| paisagens | landscapes (plural) |
| rio | river |
| retrato | portrait |
| filha | daughter |
| genro | son-in-law |
| olhos cheios de água | eyes full of tears |
| lindo/a | beautiful / lovely |
| via | saw / used to see (past imperfect of ver) |
| caminho | way / path / road |
| andaram | walked (3rd person plural past of andar) |
| andar | to walk / to go |
| de mãos dadas | hand in hand |
| sabes | you know (2nd person singular present of saber) |
| pensei | I thought (1st person singular past of pensar) |
| sentir | to feel |
| inútil | useless / pointless |
| agora | now |
| percebo | I understand (1st person singular present of perceber) |
| perceber | to understand / to realise |
| fim | end |
| livre | free |
| vida | life |
| só | only / just |
| acabei | I finished (1st person singular past of acabar) |
| só acabei de começar | I have only just begun |
| material de arte | art supplies |
| aprender | to learn |
| novo/a | new / young |
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