I was teaching a class yesterday, and my client was feeling confused about the difference between todo dia, o dia todo, and todo o dia. This can really be confusing because each of these expressions has an alternative form.
In this Portuguese lesson I will help you get this right and speak Portuguese with confidence. I will give you the meaning of these expressions of time and show you 24 examples using the expressions in full sentences. For each example, you have the translation in English and an audio file in Portuguese, so you can hear the pronunciation.
You will also learn related expressions of time, such as how to say every week, every year, the whole year, etc.
How to say Every day in Portuguese
There are two ways to say every day in Portuguese:
- Todo dia = every day
- Todos os dias = every day
There is no difference in meaning or in use between these two expressions.
The song Cotidiano, by Chico Buarque, uses the expression todo dia. Seu Jorge recorded an awesome version of the song.
The song Tempo Perdido, by Legião Urbana, on the other hand, uses todos os dias.
Here are examples using these expressions:
1. Dani malha todo dia. = Dani works out every day.
2) Gosto muito de ler. Todo dia, depois do trabalho, eu relaxo lendo um bom livro. = I really like to read. Every day, after work, I relax with a good book.
3) Mariana come chocolate todos os dias. = Mariana eats chocolate every day.
4) Ana acorda cedo todos os dias. = Ana wakes up early every day.
How to say The whole day in Portuguese
There are two ways to say the whole day in Portuguese:
- O dia todo = the whole day
- Todo o dia = the whole day
There is no difference in meaning or in use between these two expressions.
In my view, the first option – o dia todo – is more common.
Here are examples:
1) Ontem passei o dia todo passeando em São Francisco. = Yesterday I spent the entire day driving around San Francisco.
2) Ontem Leonardo passou o dia todo na praia. = Yesterday Leonardo spent the whole day at the beach.
3) É uma longa viagem de São Francisco a Recife. Às vezes, leva todo o dia para chegar lá. = It is a long trip from San Francisco to Recife. Sometimes it takes the whole day to get there.
4) Vou tirar férias. Quero ficar o dia todo sem fazer nada todo dia. I’m going on vacation. I want to spend all day doing nothing every day.
Other expressions of time with these patterns
The patterns above are very useful as they apply to all other similar expressions time in Portuguese.
Every…
- Every week = toda semana / todas as semanas
- Every weekend = todo fim de semana / todos os fins de semana
- Every month = todo mês / todos os meses
- Every year = todo ano / todos os anos
The whole…
- The whole week = a semana toda / toda a semana
- The whole weekend = o fim de semana todo / todo o fim de semana
- The whole month = o mês todo / todo o mês
- The whole year = o ano todo / todo o ano
- The whole = o tempo todo / todo o tempo
Below are additional examples to help you speak master these expressions of time and speak Portuguese with confidence.
Every…
1) Janete joga baralho toda semana. = Janete plays cards every week.
2) Diogo escreve novos artigos todas as semanas. = Diogo writes new articles every week.
3) Eu vou à praia todo fim de semana. = I go to the beach every weekend.
4) Helena visita os pais dela todos os fins de semana. = Helena visits her parents every weekend.
5) Tiago e Clara fazem trabalho voluntário todo mês. = Tiago and Clara do volunteer work every month.
6) Vanessa vai a Búzios todos os meses. = Vanessa goes to Búzios every month.
7) Eu vou ao Brasil todo ano. = I go to Brazil every year.
8) Ricardo troca de carro todos os anos. = Ricardo changes his car (gets a new car) every year.
The whole…
1) João trabalha a semana toda. = João works the whole week.
2) Marcos passou toda a semana gripado. = Marcos spent the whole week with a cold.
3) Vitória passou o fim de semana todo ensaiando. = Vitória spent the whole weekend rehearsing.
4) Rosa passou todo o fim de semana preparando a apresentação. = Rosa spent the whole weekend preparing the presentation.
5) Estou de férias e quero viajar o mês todo. I am on vacation and want to travel the whole month.
6) Glória vai ficar todo o mês de julho na Bahia. = Glória will stay the whole month of July in Bahia.
7) Carol quer viajar o ano todo. = Carol wants to travel the whole year.
8) Cecília sempre passa todo o ano esperando as férias. = Cecília always spends the whole year waiting for her vacation.
I hope this Portuguese lesson has clarified a few things for you. This is my goal: to help you speak Portuguese with ease and truly enjoy your Portuguese ♥
Now learn how to say once a week, twice a week, three times a week, etc. in Portuguese.
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