A Última Carta
Uma avó descobre uma forma especial de comunicar com o neto que vive em Londres.
enviar—to sendRead this in the PortuStories app
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Story opening — Portuguese with English Translation
A Lurdes tem setenta e dois anos e vive no Porto. O seu neto Diogo foi para Londres há três anos a trabalhar. A avó Lurdes envia-lhe uma carta todos os meses. Escreve sobre o tempo, sobre os vizinhos e sobre as receitas que faz ao domingo.
Lurdes is seventy-two years old and lives in Porto. Her grandson Diogo went to London three years ago for work. Grandmother Lurdes sends him a letter every month. She writes about the weather, about the neighbours and about the recipes she makes on Sundays.
Diogo nunca responde. Ele diz que está muito ocupado. A avó não se queixa. Continua a enviar as suas cartas, mês após mês. Um dia, Diogo recebe um telefonema do hospital: a avó está doente.
Diogo never replies. He says he is very busy. His grandmother does not complain. She keeps sending her letters, month after month. One day, Diogo receives a phone call from the hospital: his grandmother is ill.
The remaining 3 paragraphs are in the reader, with audio for every sentence and tap-to-translate on every word.
Vocabulary Glossary
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| nunca | never |
| responde | replies / answers (3rd person singular, present of responder) |
| responder | to reply / to answer |
| diz | says (3rd person singular, present of dizer) |
| dizer | to say / to tell |
| está | is (3rd person singular, present of estar) |
| estar | to be (temporary state) |
| muito | very / a lot |
| ocupado | busy |
| avó | grandmother |
| não | not / no |
| queixar-se | to complain |
| queixa | complains (3rd person singular, present of queixar-se) |
| continua | continues (3rd person singular, present of continuar) |
| continuar | to continue |
| enviar | to send |
| envia | sends (3rd person singular, present of enviar) |
| suas | her / his / their (feminine plural possessive) |
| carta | letter (post) |
| cartas | letters (post, plural) |
| mês | month |
| após | after |
| mês após mês | month after month |
| dia | day |
| recebe | receives (3rd person singular, present of receber) |
| receber | to receive |
| telefonema | phone call |
| hospital | hospital |
| doente | ill / sick |
| chorar | to cry |
| chora | cries (3rd person singular, present of chorar) |
| fica | stays / becomes (3rd person singular, present of ficar) |
| ficar | to stay / to become |
| melhor | better / best |
| senta-se | sits down (3rd person singular, present reflexive of sentar-se) |
| sentar-se | to sit down |
| mesa | table |
| escreve | writes (3rd person singular, present of escrever) |
| escrever | to write |
| primeira | first (feminine) |
| verdade | truth |
| de verdade | real / genuine / for real |
| a partir de | from (a point in time) onwards |
| todas | all / every (feminine plural) |
| semana | week |
| semanas | weeks (plural) |
| semana após semana | week after week |
| pintora | painter (female) |
| pintar | to paint |
| vive | lives (3rd person singular, present of viver) |
| viver | to live |
| perto | near / close |
| perto de | near / close to |
| Bairro Alto | Bairro Alto (historic neighbourhood in Lisbon) |
| seu | his / her / its (masculine singular possessive) |
| atelier | studio / atelier |
| tem | has (3rd person singular, present of ter) |
| ter | to have |
| grande | big / large |
| janela | window |
| virada | facing / turned (feminine, past participle of virar) |
| norte | north |
| luz | light |
| perfeita | perfect (feminine) |
| trabalhar | to work |
| há | there is / there are; ago (with time expressions) |
| seis | six |
| meses | months (plural) |
| consegue | manages / is able to (3rd person singular, present of conseguir) |
| conseguir | to manage / to be able to |
| tela | canvas |
| em branco | blank / empty |
| branco | white / blank |
| sexta-feira | Friday |
| tarde | afternoon / late |
| apanha | catches / takes (3rd person singular, present of apanhar) |
| apanhar | to catch / to take (transport) |
| comboio | train |
| Alentejo | Alentejo (region in southern Portugal) |
| mãe | mother |
| aldeia | village |
| pequena | small (feminine) |
| entre | between / among |
| campos | fields (plural) |
| trigo | wheat |
| oliveiras | olive trees (plural) |
| oliveira | olive tree |
| passa | spends (time) / passes (3rd person singular, present of passar) |
| passar | to spend (time) / to pass |
| fim de semana | weekend |
| caminhar | to walk / to hike |
| leva | takes / carries (3rd person singular, present of levar) |
| levar | to take / to carry |
| bloco | pad / block |
| esquissos | sketches (plural) |
| bloco de esquissos | sketchbook / sketch pad |
| começa | begins (3rd person singular, present of começar) |
| começar | to begin / to start |
| desenhar | to draw / to sketch |
| antigas | old / ancient (feminine plural) |
| pedras | stones (plural) |
| paredes | walls (plural) |
| dourada | golden (feminine) |
| neto | grandson |
| caixa | box |
| imaginária | imaginary (feminine) |
| sentido | direction / sense |
| encontra | finds (3rd person singular, present of encontrar) |
| encontrar | to find |
| madeira | wood / wooden |
| caixa de madeira | wooden box |
| respondia | used to reply (3rd person singular, imperfect of responder) |
| frequência | frequency |
| com que frequência | how often |
| final | end / final |
| história | story / history |
| onde | where |
| faz | does / makes (3rd person singular, present of fazer) |
| fazer | to do / to make |
| domingo | Sunday |
| quarto | room / bedroom |
| dentro | inside |
| todas as | all the / every (feminine) |
| também | also / too |
| outras | other / others (feminine plural) |
| enviou | sent (3rd person singular, preterite of enviar) |
| respostas | replies / answers (plural) |
| escreveu | wrote (3rd person singular, preterite of escrever) |
| querida | dear (feminine, used in greetings) |
| hoje | today |
| fui | went (1st person singular, preterite of ir) |
| ir | to go |
| Tâmisa | Thames (river in London) |
| lê | reads (3rd person singular, present of ler) |
| ler | to read |
| cada | each / every |
| palavra | word |
| seus | his / her / its (masculine plural possessive) |
| óculos | glasses / spectacles |
| novos | new (masculine plural) |
| sorri | smiles (3rd person singular, present of sorrir) |
| sorrir | to smile |
| finalmente | finally |
| pensa | thinks (3rd person singular, present of pensar) |
| pensar | to think |
| chegam | arrive (3rd person plural, present of chegar) |
| chegar | to arrive |
| dois | two (masculine) |
| sentidos | directions / senses (plural) |
| Lisboa | Lisbon (capital of Portugal) |
| Évora | Évora (city in the Alentejo region) |
| Londres | London |
| já | already / now |
| ainda | still / yet |
| sempre | always |
| bem | well |
| só | only / alone |
| então | then / so |
| agora | now |
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