After all the formal topics that need to be discussed when getting to know someone, there arises a need to find common ground to continue the conversation. A shared profession alone cannot unite people as much, even if they have something to talk about. Work is not as enjoyable as, for example, engaging in sports together or attending a concert. Therefore, today we want to explore the topic of how we spend our free time (one of the options, of course) and how we can arrange a new meeting.
Dialogue
To start, read the conversation between Rodrigo and Marta. Rodrigo did not immediately realize that Marta was unlikely to play football with him. However, a little later, he figured out how to invite Marta on a date. He even didn’t want to wait for the weekend, so he invited Marta to the park, even though he didn’t mention that he also enjoyed walking.
Rodrigo: Olá, Marta! Tudo bem? (Hi, Marta! How are you?)
Marta: Olá, Rodrigo! Está tudo bem, e contigo? (Hi, Rodrigo! Everything is fine, and you?)
Rodrigo: Também estou bem, obrigado. O que costumas fazer nos teus tempos livres? (I’m also fine, thank you. What do you usually do in your free time?)
Marta: Gosto muito de ler livros e de ir ao parque. E tu, o que fazes? (I really like reading books and going to the park. And you, what do you do?)
Rodrigo: Eu gosto de ir ao ginásio e adoro jogar futebol com os amigos. Mas também gosto de ir ao cinema. (I like going to the gym and I love playing soccer with friends. But I also like going to the movies.)
Marta: Ah, eu também gosto de ir ao cinema! Que tipo de filmes gostas de ver? (Oh, I also love going to the movies! What kind of movies do you like to watch?)
Rodrigo: Adoro filmes de ação e de comédia. E tu? (I love action and comedy movies. And you?)
Marta: Eu prefiro filmes de romance, mas também gosto de comédias. (I prefer romance movies, but I also like comedies.)
Rodrigo: Boa! Queres ir ao cinema este fim de semana? Há uma comédia nova que parece muito engraçada. (Good! Do you want to go to the movies this weekend? There’s a new comedy that looks really funny.)
Marta: Sim, claro! Quero ir. Sabes a que horas é o filme? (Yes, of course! I want to go. Do you know what time the movie is?)
Rodrigo: Acho que há sessões às 15h e às 18h. A que horas preferes ir? (I think there are showings at 3 PM and 6 PM. What time do you prefer to go?)
Marta: Às 15h não posso. Posso às 18h e depois podemos ir jantar. O que achas? (I can’t at 3 PM. I can at 6 PM and then we can go have dinner. What do you think?)
Rodrigo: Boa ideia! Ah, e amanhã? Queres ir ao parque comigo? Podemos fazer uma caminhada ou andar de bicicleta. (Good idea! Oh, and tomorrow? Do you want to go to the park with me? We can walk or ride a bike.)
Marta: Hmm, eu detesto andar de bicicleta, mas posso caminhar contigo. (Hmm, I hate cycling, but I can go for a walk with you.)
Rodrigo: Perfeito! Então combinamos amanhã às 10h no parque e no sábado vamos ao cinema às 18h? (Perfect! Then let’s agree on tomorrow at 10:00 in the park and on Saturday we’ll go to the cinema at 18:00?)
Marta: Combinado! Até amanhã, Rodrigo. (Deal! See you tomorrow, Rodrigo.)
Rodrigo: Até amanhã, Marta! (See you tomorrow, Marta!)
Verbs of Preference
The most straightforward verb that expresses our preferences is preferir (to prefer). It has only one irregular form – for the pronoun “eu”: prefiro. Otherwise, the conjugation of this verb follows the usual rule for conjugating verbs ending in “ir”. Moreover, the verb does not require any prepositions after it. However, if we want to indicate that when choosing between two things, we prefer one of them, the preposition “a” will come in handy.
- Correr é aborrecido. Prefiro nadar para emagrecer. (Running is boring. I prefer swimming to lose weight.)
- Prefiro peixe a carne. (I prefer fish to meat.)
- Three verbs will help us demonstrate our attitude to something and give it an emotional coloring: gostar (to love), adorar (to adore) and their antonym detestar (to hate).All of them are regular and are declined according to the general rule of conjugation of verbs ending in “-ar”.
- Gosto de sumos, mas adoro leite e detesto cerveja. (I love juices, but I adore water and I hate beer.)
- Detesto deitar-me tarde, mas adoro comer muito antes de ir dormir e gosto de beber algo: vinho ou uísque. (I hate to go to bed late, but I love to eat a lot before going to bed and I like to drink something: wine or whiskey.)
- There are also the verbs amar (to love) and odiar (to hate). They have a very strong meaning, they are extreme opposites. However, in Portuguese they are used very much.
- Amo-te. (I love you.)
- Odeio pessoas que magoam os animais. (I hate people who harm animals.
Verbo “costumar”
This verb is not encountered very often, but it helps us describe what we are used to. That is, to describe our habits. I don’t need to say that we liked it or vice versa.
- Сostumo lavar roupa uma vez por semana. (I usually wash my clothes once a week.)
- O que costumas comer ao jantar? (What do you usually eat for dinner?)
- Often the verb “costumar” appears next to the adverb “normalmente” (usually).
- Normalmente costumo comer salada ao jantar, mas posso fazer uma exceção. (I usually eat salad for dinner, but I can make an exception.)
- However, to the question “O que costumas fazer?” we can answer what we like or don’t like to do.
- Oh yeah, we forgot to add that it’s a regular verb.
Verb “combinar”
We draw your attention to this verb because there are some nuances. It has several meanings – “combine” and “agree”. Today we are interested in the second meaning. When we are in the process of discussion, we use the verb “combinar” as usual. By the way, it is correct. But when we talk about the result, we do not say “combinámos”, but say the following:
- Combinado! Amanhã to cinco horas no escritório. (Deal! Tomorrow at five o’clock in the office.)
- Também quer ir ao cinema? Combinado! (Do you want to go to the cinema too? Deal!)
Conclusion
Dialogue alone teaches grammar, vocabulary, and gives ideas for conversation. We can’t parse the grammar of every line, but we can pay attention to something special. This way you refresh your memory of certain rules, and perhaps learn something new. Dry grammar rules and their examples do not give a complete picture, but a full-fledged dialogue with a beginning, development and result is an excellent training base. Therefore, carefully follow our updates on the blog!