Spanish to Portuguese Language Differences

FROM SPANISH TO PORTUGUESE

a. Hace dos meses que llegué.
Há dois meses que cheguei.
b. Llegué hace dos meses.
Cheguei há dois meses.

The patterning in these Portuguese utterances pretty closely parallels the patterning in the Spanish. The difference is in the use of a form of haver (cf. Spanish haber) in a slot where you are accustomed to using a form of hacer. Portuguese speakers can also use faz, from fazer, in these utterances, but há seems to be preferred by most.

[European Portuguese only: Spanish estar + -ndo vs. Portuguese estar + a + infinitive.]

Spanish | Portuguese

Spanish	Portuguese
El presidente está hablando.	O presidente está a falar.
Estoy leyendo.	Estou a ler.
Estaban almorzando.	Estavam a almoçar.

Although European Portuguese uses the estar + -ndo construction on occasion, the estar + a + infinitive construction is more common.

Usage of Ser and Estar

The distribution of ser and estar in Portuguese is very nearly the same as it is in Spanish. Observe these instances of identical usage.

	Spanish	Portuguese
Origin:	Es de México.	É do México.
Time:	Son las tres.	São três.
Possession:	Son míos.	São meus.
Nouns:	Es médico.	É médico.
Characteristics:	Son bonitas.	São bonitas.
Passive voice:	La carta fue escrita hoy.	A carta foi escrita hoje.