A Memória
Elisa trabalha num centro de apagamento de memórias. Um dia descobre que um cliente foi apagado contra a sua vontade.
apagar—to erase / to wipeRead this in the PortuStories app
European Portuguese audio (Google neural voice) · Tap any word to translate · SRS vocabulary · Comprehension quizzes
Story opening — Portuguese with English Translation
Elisa era técnica de memória no Centro Lethé, uma clínica licenciada que oferecia o serviço de apagamento selectivo de recordações traumáticas. O procedimento era legal, regulado e, segundo os brochuras, inteiramente voluntário. Elisa gostava do seu trabalho — imaginava que ajudava pessoas a libertarem-se de peso desnecessário.
Elisa was a memory technician at the Lethe Centre, a licensed clinic that offered the service of selective erasure of traumatic memories. The procedure was legal, regulated and, according to the brochures, entirely voluntary. Elisa liked her job — she imagined she was helping people free themselves from unnecessary burdens.
O processo de rotina era simples: o cliente assinava um formulário de consentimento, descrevia as memórias-alvo numa entrevista de triagem, e depois o técnico calibrava o equipamento de acordo com os parâmetros neurológicos específicos. Elisa tinha feito o procedimento trezentas e quarenta e dois vezes. Nunca tinha encontrado nada fora do comum — até ao cliente do processo 7741.
The routine process was simple: the client signed a consent form, described the target memories in a screening interview, and then the technician calibrated the equipment according to specific neurological parameters. Elisa had performed the procedure three hundred and forty-two times. She had never found anything out of the ordinary — until the client in file 7741.
The remaining 3 paragraphs are in the reader, with audio for every sentence and tap-to-translate on every word.
Vocabulary Glossary
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| apagamento | erasure / deletion |
| consentimento | consent |
| discrepância | discrepancy |
| triagem | screening / triage |
| adiar | to postpone / to delay |
| cúmplice | accomplice / complicit |
| construir | to construct / to build |
| apagar | to erase / to wipe / to delete |
| apaga | erases (3rd person singular, present of apagar) |
| apagou | erased (3rd person singular, past of apagar) |
| apagadas | erased (feminine plural past participle) |
| memória | memory |
| memórias | memories |
| recordações | recollections / memories |
| traumáticas | traumatic (feminine plural) |
| selectivo | selective (masculine) |
| técnica | technician (feminine) / technical (feminine adjective) |
| clínica | clinic |
| licenciada | licensed / certified (feminine) |
| oferecer | to offer / to provide |
| oferecia | offered / provided (imperfect) |
| procedimento | procedure / process |
| legal | legal |
| regulado | regulated (masculine) |
| inteiramente | entirely / completely |
| voluntário | voluntary (masculine) |
| brochura | brochure |
| segundo | according to |
| imaginar | to imagine |
| imaginava | imagined / used to imagine (imperfect) |
| libertar | to free / to liberate |
| libertarem-se | to free themselves (reflexive infinitive) |
| peso | weight / burden |
| desnecessário | unnecessary (masculine) |
| rotina | routine |
| de rotina | routine (adjective phrase) |
| assinar | to sign |
| assinava | signed / used to sign (imperfect) |
| formulário | form |
| descrever | to describe |
| descrevia | described / used to describe (imperfect) |
| memórias-alvo | target memories |
| entrevista | interview |
| calibrar | to calibrate |
| calibrava | calibrated / used to calibrate (imperfect) |
| equipamento | equipment |
| parâmetros | parameters |
| neurológicos | neurological (masculine plural) |
| específicos | specific (masculine plural) |
| realizar | to perform / to carry out |
| realizado | performed / carried out (past participle) |
| fora do comum | out of the ordinary / unusual |
| processo | file / case / process |
| cliente | client |
| meia-idade | middle age |
| homem de meia-idade | middle-aged man |
| apresentar-se | to present oneself / to introduce oneself |
| apresentava-se | presented himself (reflexive imperfect) |
| calmo | calm (masculine) |
| cooperante | cooperative |
| comparar | to compare |
| comparou | compared (3rd person singular, past) |
| registos | records / files |
| notar | to notice |
| notou | noticed (3rd person singular, past of notar) |
| assinatura | signature |
| bilhete de identidade | identity card |
| apresentar | to present / to show |
| apresentado | presented (past participle) |
| ligeiramente | slightly / a little |
| suficientemente | sufficiently / enough |
| quem sabia olhar | someone who knew how to look (idiom) |
| adiu | postponed (3rd person singular, past of adiar) |
| pretexto | pretext / excuse |
| sob pretexto | under the pretext of |
| investigar | to investigate |
| investigou | investigated (3rd person singular, past) |
| antigo | former / old (masculine) |
| funcionário | employee / civil servant |
| ministério | ministry |
| habitação | housing |
| apresentar queixa | to file a complaint |
| queixa | complaint |
| corrupção | corruption |
| arquivada | archived / shelved (feminine past participle) |
| arquivar | to archive / to shelve (a case) |
| a ponto de | about to / on the verge of |
| provavelmente | probably |
| documentar | to document |
| documentavam | documented (3rd plural, imperfect) |
| questão | question / issue |
| enfrentar | to face / to confront |
| enfrentou | faced (3rd person singular, past of enfrentar) |
| restaurar | to restore |
| restaurasse | restored (imperfect subjunctive) |
| preservar | to preserve / to protect |
| preservasse | preserved (imperfect subjunctive) |
| agir | to act |
| estaria | would be (3rd person singular, conditional of estar) |
| actual | current / present (adjective) |
| preferir | to prefer |
| preferisse | preferred (imperfect subjunctive) |
| esquecer | to forget |
| tornar-se | to become |
| tornava-se | was becoming (reflexive imperfect) |
| completamente | completely |
| frente | front |
| à frente de | in front of |
| botão | button |
| botão de início | start button |
| dedo | finger |
| sobre | on / over / about |
| identidade | identity |
| sobreviver | to survive |
| pode sobreviver | can survive |
| constroem | construct / build (3rd plural, present of construir) |
| já | already |
| ainda | still / yet |
| nunca | never |
| sempre | always |
| apenas | only / merely |
| talvez | perhaps / maybe |
| claro | clearly / of course |
| realmente | really / truly |
| finalmente | finally |
| assim | thus / in this way |
| serviço | service |
| recordação | recollection / memory (singular) |
| gostar de | to like / to enjoy |
| gostava | liked / used to like (imperfect) |
| trabalho | work / job |
| desnecessário | unnecessary (masculine) |
| assinatura | signature |
| bilhete de identidade | identity card |
| ligeiramente | slightly |
| suficientemente | sufficiently / enough |
| antigo funcionário | former employee |
| apresentar queixa | to file a complaint |
| há dois meses | two months ago |
| a ponto de | about to / on the verge of |
| provavelmente | probably |
| questão | question / issue / matter |
| simples | simple |
| restaurar | to restore |
| preservar | to preserve / to protect |
| actual | current / present |
| preferir | to prefer |
| esquecer | to forget |
| tornar-se cúmplice | to become complicit |
| completamente | completely |
| vinte minutos | twenty minutes |
| dedo | finger |
| início | start / beginning |
| sobreviver | to survive |
| constroem | construct / build (3rd plural, present of construir) |
| investigar | to investigate |
| sub pretexto técnico | under a technical pretext |
| trezentos e quarenta e dois | three hundred and forty-two |
| nunca tinha encontrado | had never found (pluperfect) |
| até ao | until / up to |
| dilema | dilemma |
| moral | moral / ethical |
| agir sem | to act without |
| talvez | perhaps / maybe |
| se | whether (conjunction) |
| compreender | to understand |
| compreendia | understood (imperfect of compreender) |
| técnica de memória | memory technician |
| Centro Lethé | Lethe Centre (named after the river of forgetfulness) |
| apagamento selectivo | selective erasure |
| recordações traumáticas | traumatic memories |
| inteiramente voluntário | entirely voluntary |
| ajudar pessoas a libertarem-se | to help people free themselves |
| de peso desnecessário | from unnecessary burden |
| formulário de consentimento | consent form |
| entrevista de triagem | screening interview |
| de acordo com | according to / in accordance with |
| parâmetros neurológicos específicos | specific neurological parameters |
| trezentas e quarenta e dois vezes | three hundred and forty-two times |
| nada fora do comum | nothing out of the ordinary |
| até ao cliente do processo 7741 | until the client in file 7741 |
| calmo e cooperante | calm and cooperative |
| discrepância na assinatura | discrepancy in the signature |
| ligeiramente diferente | slightly different |
| suficientemente diferente para quem sabia olhar | different enough for one who knew how to look |
| sob pretexto técnico | under a technical pretext |
| antigo funcionário do Ministério da Habitação | former Ministry of Housing employee |
| queixa por corrupção | complaint for corruption |
| queixa arquivada | archived complaint / shelved complaint |
| a ponto de ter apagadas as memórias | about to have his memories erased |
| consentimento actual | current consent |
| talvez ele preferisse esquecer | perhaps he preferred to forget |
| durante vinte minutos | for twenty minutes |
| com o dedo sobre o botão de início | with her finger on the start button |
| a identidade de uma pessoa | a person's identity |
More C1 stories
All C1 stories →More Dystopian stories
All Dystopian stories →Related grammar
Related vocabulary
Want audio + tap-to-translate?
The PortuStories app adds European Portuguese audio (Google's neural voice), word-by-word translation, SRS vocabulary tracking, and comprehension quizzes to every story.