III. NOUNS

INFLECTION

19. Portuguese nouns have no case forms; they distinguish in form only between singular and plural.

PLURAL FORMATION

(See Exercise VII, page 127)

20. The plural is formed by adding s to the singular: amigo, friend, pl. amigos; casa, house, pl. casas.

To this rule there are the following exceptions:

1. Final m changes to n before the final s: homem, man, pl. homens.

2. Final ix and ex change to ice before the final s: index, pl. indices; appendix, pl. appendices.

3. Final r and z add e before the final s: mar, sea, pl. mares; cruz, cross, pl. cruzes.

4. Final al, ol, and ul are changed to aes, oes, and ues: sal, salt, pl. saes; dedal, thimble, pl. dedaes; anzol, fish-hook, pl. anzoes; paul, swamp, pl. paues.

Except that consul, mal, cal, real (money) have for plurals consules, males, cales, and reis.

5. Final el is changed to eis: papel, paper, pl. papeis; annel, ring, pl. anneis. Mel, honey, becomes either meis or meles.

6. Final il, when the word has the acute accent, is changed to is: barril, barrel, pl. barris; funil, funnel, pl. funis.

When, however, the word has the grave accent the final il is changed to eis: dócil, docile, pl. doceis; fóssil, fossil, pl. fósseis.

a. Nouns ending in ão form the plural in three ways:

1. Most nouns ending in ão change ão to ões: acção, acções.

2. A few add s to the singular: these are mão, irmão, pagão, orfão, orgão, sotão, temporão, vão, zangão.

3. A few others change ão to ães: escrivão, notary, pl. escrivães. These are allemão, cão, capellão, capitão, catalão, charlatão, deão, ermitão, escrivão, guardião, pão, sacristão, tabellião.

b. Nouns ending in s have the same form in the plural: o pires, os pires, the saucers; o caes, os caes, the quays. Except Deus, cos, and simples (drug) become deuses, coses, simplices.

c. When the accent of a word ending in ão is grave, the plural is always in ãos: órgão, organ, pl. orgãos; and similarly benção, blessing; accordão, sentence of a court; sotão, attic.

21. Plurals Only.—Many nouns are used only in the plural. Such are

algemas, fetters

alviçaras, rewards

annaes, annals

arredores, environs

calças, trousers

calendas, calends

ceroulas, drawers

confins, confines

completas, complin

exequias, funeral rites

expensas, costs

ferias, holidays

manes, shades

matinas, matins

nonas, nones

nupcias, nuptials

trevas, darkness

viveres, provisions

22. Compound Words.—Compound words generally have the plural form for the final word when one of the components has an adverbial sense: salvo-conducto, pl. salvo-conductos; linguas neo-latinas, neo-Latin languages; jornaes luso-brasileiros, Portuguese-Brazilian journals; guarda-sol, sunshade, pl. guarda-soes; contra-veneno, antidote, pl. contra-venenos.

a. Compound words take the plural in both parts when they both represent functions belonging to the noun: surdo-mudo, deaf-mute, pl. surdos-mudos.

b. As in English some nouns are plural but are used only in a singular sense: Montes Claros fica na planicie, Montes Claros is on the plain.

Compound words united by de usually take the plural in the first part only: flor-de-lis, pl. flores-de-lis.

c. Plural nouns that take the article, however, are used in the plural: os Alpes ficam na Suissa, the Alps are in Switzerland; os Estados Unidos fizeram guerra, the United States made war.

23. Varied Meanings.—Some names change their meaning with the change of number. These correspond to similar changes that take place in the English language as illustrated by the words iron and irons, liberty and liberties.

SINGULAR MEANING PLURAL MEANING

bem well, good bens property

côrte court côrtes congress, tribunals

dote dowery dotes accomplishments

ferro iron ferros shackles

filho son filhos children (or sons)

honra honor honras solemnities

letra letter letras literature

liberdade liberty liberdades impertinence

molhado wet molhados groceries

pai father pais parents

parte part partes parties (judicial)

secco dry seccos dry-goods

zelo zeal zelos jealousy

GENDER OF NOUNS

(See Exercise VIII, page 128)

24. Gender is grammatical, and all nouns are either masculine or feminine.⁠[19]⁠

The gender of words is sometimes determined by meaning and at other times by termination.

There are no rules covering all cases, and there are many exceptions to those given below.

25. Masculine.—The following are masculine:

1. Nouns denoting males and their offices and occupations: o homem, the man; o cavallo, the horse; juiz, judge; pai, father.

Note.—In the names of animals having two genders the masculine form is generally used to designate the species: o lobo, the wolf.

2. Nouns not implying sex distinction and ending in

á (a with acute accent) sofá, tafetá, chá (except a pá, shovel or spade).

é (except chaminé, fé, galé, maré, ré, sé).

i (except lei, law, grei, flock).

o (short or mute). This does not refer to the ending ão.

ó (accented o) for the most part. The following, however, are feminine: enxó, adz; mó, millstone; avó, grandmother; filhó, cake; ilhó, eyelet.

l (except cal, lime, cathedral, moral, pastoral).

m (except ordem, order, and those ending in gem).

r (except colher, spoon; côr, color; dôr, pain; flôr, flower).

s (except those used only in the plural and ending in as: andas, arrhas, cocegas, and a few in es: preces, ephemerides).

3. Nouns ending in ote and ume are generally masculine.

Examples: dote, chicote, lume, costume, betume.

4. Infinitive verbs are masculine when used as substantives: o andar do cavallo, the gait of the horse.

5. Masculine are the names of seas, rivers, lakes, and mountains, of the letters of the alphabet, of the numbers, the months, the points of the compass, and the notes in music.

26. Feminine.—The following are feminine:

a. Nouns denoting females and their names and occupations: a vacca, the cow, mãi, mother, costureira, seamstress, rainha, queen.

b. Note.—In cases of sex distinction there are generally two forms, as moço, young man, moça, young woman, poeta, poet, poetisa, poetess. There are, however, some words which have the same form for both genders, such as martyr, jovem, and tigre, which may be either masculine or feminine.

c. In some cases there is no masculine form of a noun: rã, frog, abelha, bee, formiga, ant, aguia, eagle, onça, panther, cobra, snake, truta, trout, mosca, fly. When it becomes necessary in such cases to indicate sex, it is done by use of the word macho, male, or femea, female; o salmão macho, the male salmon, or a onça femea, the female panther; o corvo macho, the male crow.

d. Nouns not implying sex distinction ending in:

a or ã. Except dia, day, mappa, map, and words from the Greek ending in ma: aroma, clima, climate, diploma, dogma, emblema, idioma, poema, thema, problema, symptoma, epigramma.

ade, as caridade, charity.

ude, as virtude. Except alaude, ataude, açude, almude, grude.

gem. Except pagem, page, and selvagem, savage, which may be of either gender.

ie, as planicie.

27. Common Terminations.—The following terminations are common to both genders: Words ending in

az Masc. alcatraz, ananaz, anthraz, cabaz, cartaz, gaz, lilaz, rapaz.

Fem. paz, tenaz.

ez Masc. arnez, convez, freguez, jaez, mez, pez, revez, xadréz.

Fem. altivez, honradez, fez, mudez, pequenhez, rapidez, redondez, rez, solidez, surdez, tez, timidez, torquez, vez.

iz Masc. almofariz, giz, matiz, nariz, paiz, pleuriz, tapiz, verniz.

Fem. buiz, cerviz, cicatriz, codorniz, matriz, perdiz, raiz, sobrepelliz.

oz Masc. albernoz, algoz, aljaroz, arroz, cadoz, coz, retroz.

Fem. foz, noz, voz.

uz Masc. alcaçuz, alcatruz, arcabuz, capuz, cuzcuz, lapuz, obuz.

Fem. cruz, luz.

e Masc. broche, café, carcere, codice, corte, dente, epitome, tapete, traquete, valle, vertice.

Fem. arte, ave, chave, corte, crise, fé, fome, libré, lide, nave, neve, ponte, ralé, rede, saude, sé, sebe, sede, sege, torre, torrente.

ão Masc. I. Augmentatives, even though derived from feminine original. Examples: caixão (caixa), portão (porta), mulherão (mulher).

II. Those in ão and not derived from words of the third declension of the Latin: coração, grão, sabão, siphão, trovão.

Fem. Words so ending derived from words of the third declension in the Latin: acção, constituição, dicção, execução, feição, instituição, legião, lentidão, mansidão, multidão, opinião, rebellião, região, resolução, servidão, solidão, união. (But pão from panis and sermão from sermo are both masculine.)

28. Nouns of Opposite Sex. (See Exercise IX, page 129.)—Nouns denoting individuals of opposite sex may be either related, unrelated, or identical. They are

a. Related when the feminine form is derived from the masculine either

I. By adding a to the masculine form:

auctor, author auctora, authoress

cantor, singer (male) cantora, singer (female)

inglez, Englishman ingleza, Englishwoman

senhor, gentleman senhora, lady

Note.—A few nouns in r have two feminine forms, as lavrador, lavradora, or lavradeira; cantor, cantora, or cantatriz. There is also a tendency to change final or to eira, as trabalhador, trabalhadeira.

II. By changing final o or e to a, as

hospede, guest (male) hospeda, guest (female)

mano, brother mana, sister

mestre, teacher (male) mestra, teacher (female)

moço, young man moça, young woman

parente, kinsman parenta, kinswoman

III. By changing the terminal to inha, essa, eza, neza, ola:

barão, baron baroneza, baroness

conde, count condessa, countess

gallo, cock gallinha, hen

hespanhol, Spaniard hespanhola, Spanish woman

principe, prince princeza, princess

b. Related but irregular forms of nouns of opposite sex are the following:

MASCULINE FEMININE

avô, grandfather avó, grandmother

dom, sir, lord dona, lady

frade, friar (ant. freire) freira, nun

ladrão, thief ladra, woman thief

perú, turkey-cock perua, turkey-hen

rapaz, lad rapariga, girl

rei, king rainha, queen

réo, defendant ré, female defendant

c. Unrelated when not derived from the same word:

boi, ox vacca, cow

cavallo, horse egua, mare

genro, son-in-law nora, daughter-in-law

pai, father mãi, mother

d. Identical when the same word may be of either gender:

camarada (m. or f.), companion.

jovem (m. or f.), a young man or young woman

guia, guide

sentinella, sentinel

29. Closely Similar Related Nouns.—The Portuguese contains many nouns that are related in form and meaning, yet distinct in sex and significance. Following are some of these words:

MASCULINE

bago

barco

bodo

caneco

cantharo

carreiro

cerco

cesto

cevo

chuço

cimo

cinto

corno

encosto

fabrico⁠[20]

folho

fosso

friso

fruto

gorro

grito

horto

jarro

lanço

lenho

madeiro

marujo

modo

pago

poço

ponto

porto

ramo

ribeiro

rio

sacco

saio

sapato

tacho

taleigo

trilho

troco

vallo

veio

The feminine forms differ only in ending in a instead of o.

In each case these nouns contain the same fundamental idea, but the sense of the feminine form is more general, while that of the masculine is more specific. For example fruta is used for fruit in general, while fruto refers to one kind of fruit; madeiro is one kind of madeira (wood), and bago is one kind of a baga (berry).⁠[21]⁠

30. Similar Unrelated Nouns.—There are other words that bear a similar resemblance to each other, but which have no genetic relations and have widely different meanings. Such are:

MASCULINE MEANING FEMININE MEANING

banho bath banha lard

barro clay barra bar (of stream)

caso case casa house

espinho thorn espinha spinal column (but espinhas de peixe, fish-bones)

escolho cliff escolha choice

peito breast peita bribe

prato plate prata silver

queixo jaw queixa complaint

solo soil sola sole leather

The same word sometimes occurs as a noun, adjective, or verb; in such cases the nature of the word is indicated by the context.

31. There are still other words that are spelled precisely alike, but differ from each other in gender and in meaning. Following are some of these words:

MASCULINE MEANING FEMININE MEANING

o capital principal (money) a capital chief city

o chrisma ointment a chrisma sacrament of confirmation

o cura curate a cura cure

o guarda warder a guarda care

o lingua interpreter a lingua tongue

o lente lecturer a lente lens

o sota groom a sota queen (at cards)

QUALIFYING SUFFIXES

(See Exercise X, page 130)

32. Suffixes are extensively and effectively used to modify and extend the meaning of nouns and adjectives, and even of verbs. In these cases the meaning of the parent word is carried over in some modified form to the new word. It should be noted, however, that these suffixes do not have, as a rule, such exact meanings as do the prefixes. Most of the suffixes are directly from the Latin, while ista, isme, ite, and izar are from the Greek. Only the more important of them can be mentioned here.

Examples

TERMINATION ORIGINAL WORD MEANING WITH SUFFIX MEANING

-ada limão lemon limonada lemonade

marmelo quince marmelada⁠[22] marmalade

mulher woman mulherada a lot of women

baixo low baixada low ground

faca knife facada a knife cut

-agem homem man homenagem homage

vassalo vassal vassalagem vassalage

-al café coffee cafezal field of coffee

(The z in cafezal is for the sake of euphony.)

banana banana bananal field of bananas

milho corn milhoral field of corn

-ado consul consul consulado consulate

-cida rei king regicida king-killer

formiga ant formicida ant-killer

-aria cavallo horse cavallaria cavalry

porco hog porcaria filth

-ario⁠[23] botica apothecary’s shop boticario apothecary

-eiro-a⁠[24] mina mine mineiro miner

chá tea chaleira teakettle (or kettle)

(The l in chaleira is for euphony.)

-ense Brasil Brazil brasiliense Brazilian

-ez França France francez French

-eza rico rich riqueza riches

pobre poor pobreza poverty

-ude quieto (adj.) quiet quietude (n.) quietude

-udo This suffix expresses abundance or intensity, as

cabeça head cabeçudo big-headed, pig-headed

beiço lip beiçudo thick-lipped

-or orar to orate orador orator

falar to talk falador talker

trabalhar to work trabalhador laborer

33. Many other suffixes are so nearly like forms in English that they will be recognized, such as those ending in ficar corresponding to the English fy: clarificar, to clarify, purificar, to purify, classificar, to classify; others ending in mente corresponding to the English ending ly, as grandemente, grandly, claramente, clearly, escuramente, darkly; and in ista corresponding to the English ist, as capitalista, a capitalist, dentista, socialista, etc. Many words ending in orio correspond approximately to English words ending in ory: consistorio, repertorio. Many endings in ico correspond to the English ending ic, as artistico, symbolico; many in avel, evel, and ivel correspond to the English endings able and ible, as notavel, veneravel, indelevel, risivel, terrivel. The termination ivo often corresponds to the English ive, as instructivo, executivo.

34. The infinitives of verbs are often used as plural nouns: dizer, to say, os dizeres, the sayings; poder, to be able, os poderes, the powers.

Augmentatives

35. Augmentatives are formed by the addition of the suffixes ão, arão, aça, anha, az, azio, and ona as here illustrated.

ORIGINAL MEANING AUGMENTATIVE MEANING

casa house casarão big house

monte hill, heap montanha mountain

mulher woman mulheraça big woman

porta door portão gate

rapaz boy rapagão big fellow

rato rat ratão big rat

nariz nose narigão big nose

a. An additional augmentative effect is produced by giving a masculine ending to a feminine noun: mulherão, an enormous woman or an amazon.

b. The augmentatives sometimes convey an idea of ridicule or irony. For example, ratão is used as a slang expression for a queer fellow.

Diminutives

(See Exercise XI, page 131)

36. Diminutives are formed by the use of the following suffixes:

SUFFIX ORIGINAL MEANING DIMINUTIVE MEANING

-inho-a livro book livrinho little book

-zinho-a mão hand mãozinha little hand

-eto-a folha leaf folheto pamphlet

-ito-a mosca fly mosquito gnat

-ote camara room camarote cabin (on ship)

-ola fazenda estate fazendola a small farm

-ulo-a corpo body corpusculo molecule

-ino-a pequeno small pequenino very small (boy)

-ete pobre poor pobrete rather poor

-ilho cinto belt cintilho hat-band

-im camara room camarim dressing room (of theater)

-ella costa side costella rib

-ejo lugar place lugarejo small town

-isco chuva rain chuvisco drizzling rain

37. A still further arbitrary diminutive effect is produced by a repetition or drawing out of the syllables of the usual diminutives, as pequenininho or pequeninozinho, very, very small.

38. Another class of diminutives includes certain proper names. These, however, do not always imply smallness, but they are used as terms of endearment or compassion and as nicknames. The names for José are: Zé, Zezé, Zéca, Zezinho, Josezinho, Zequinho, Júca, Juquinha, Jóca, Cazuzo, Zuza, Zuca, Zuzu; for Francisco are used: Chico, Chiquinho, Chichi, Francisquinho, and Francisquito; for Anna are used: Anninha, Anninhas, Annazinha, Naninha, Nicota, Annicota, Annica, Annóca, Nanóca, Anniquita, Naná, Ná, and Nazinha; for João they are Janjão, Joãozinho, Jóca, Joanninho, Noca; for Maria they are Mariquinha, Maroca, Mariasinha, Marica, Mariquita.

FOOTNOTES: