Lesson 7.2

Os móveis

The Furniture

Now that you can name the rooms of a Brazilian home, let's fill them up! This lesson covers the core furniture vocabulary — sofa, bed, table, wardrobe — and teaches you how to use 'tem' to describe what's in a room. 'Tem' is the everyday Brazilian way to say 'there is / there are', and it's one of the most useful words you'll ever learn.

Learning tips

'Tem' comes from the verb 'ter' (to have), but in this use it means 'there is/are'. Formal grammar would use 'há', but in spoken BR you'll hear 'tem' 99% of the time.
'Tem' doesn't change for singular or plural in spoken Brazilian Portuguese: 'tem um sofá' / 'tem dois sofás'.
Notice furniture genders: 'a cama', 'a mesa', 'a cadeira' (feminine) vs. 'o sofá', 'o fogão', 'o armário' (masculine). Learn the article with the noun — it saves you later.
'Guarda-roupa' is a compound word. Its plural is 'guarda-roupas' — only the second part takes the 's'.

Warm-up & Active Recall

Recap: Last lesson: 'morar em' vs. 'viver', and the contractions no/na/nos/nas/num/numa. Today we use 'tem' to describe what's in each room.

Word	Meaning
a casa	the house
o apartamento	the apartment
a cozinha	the kitchen
o banheiro	the bathroom
a sala	the living room
o quarto	the bedroom
a varanda	the balcony
morar	to live (somewhere)
viver	to live (one's life)
grande	big

Dialog

Thiago just moved into his new apartment in Botafogo and asks Beatriz to help him buy furniture. Watch how they use 'tem' to describe what's already in each room and what's still missing. Notice also the use of 'está quebrado' (is broken) — a state, using 'estar'. And at the end, 'Bora!' — pure Carioca slang for 'let's go!'

🛋️ Na loja de móveis — mobiliando o apartamento novo

Thiago

Bia, você pode me ajudar? Preciso comprar móveis pro apartamento novo.

(Bia, you can me help? I-need to-buy furniture for-the apartment new.)

Bia, can you help me? I need to buy furniture for the new apartment.

Beatriz

Claro! O que você já tem?

(Sure! What you already have?)

Of course! What do you already have?

Thiago

Na sala, tem um sofá velho e uma mesa. Mas não tem cadeiras.

(In-the living-room, has a sofa old and a table. But not has chairs.)

In the living room, there's an old sofa and a table. But no chairs.

Beatriz

E na cozinha? Tem geladeira e fogão?

(And in-the kitchen? Has fridge and stove?)

And in the kitchen? Do you have a fridge and a stove?

Thiago

Tem uma geladeira nova, mas o fogão está quebrado. Preciso de um novo.

(Has a fridge new, but the stove is broken. I-need of a new.)

I have a new fridge, but the stove is broken. I need a new one.

Beatriz

E no quarto? Tem cama? Tem guarda-roupa?

(And in-the bedroom? Has bed? Has wardrobe?)

And in the bedroom? Is there a bed? A wardrobe?

Thiago

Tem uma cama, mas não tem guarda-roupa nem armário.

(Has a bed, but not has wardrobe nor cabinet.)

There's a bed, but no wardrobe and no cabinet.

Beatriz

Então vamos olhar guarda-roupas, um fogão e umas cadeiras. Bora!

(So let's to-look wardrobes, a stove and some chairs. Let's-go!)

Then let's look at wardrobes, a stove, and some chairs. Let's go!

Vocabulary

Active words

Word	IPA	Translation	Note
a cama	/a ˈkɐ.mɐ/	the bed	Feminine noun
a mesa	/a ˈme.zɐ/	the table	Feminine — both for dining and work
a cadeira	/a kaˈdej.ɾɐ/	the chair	Feminine — plural: cadeiras
o sofá	/u soˈfa/	the sofa, couch	Masculine — note the accent on 'á'
o guarda-roupa	/u ˈɡwaʁ.dɐ ˈʁow.pɐ/	the wardrobe, closet	Masculine compound — plural: guarda-roupas
a geladeira	/a ʒe.laˈdej.ɾɐ/	the fridge, refrigerator	Feminine — 'geladeira' literally means 'freezing thing'
o fogão	/u foˈɡɐ̃w̃/	the stove	Masculine — plural: fogões (note the -ões ending)
o armário	/u aʁˈma.ɾju/	the cabinet, cupboard	Masculine — in a kitchen or bedroom, any storage cabinet
novo	/ˈno.vu/	new	Ends in -o/-a — agrees with gender: novo apê, casa nova
velho	/ˈvɛ.ʎu/	old	-o/-a agreement: sofá velho, mesa velha

Passive words

Word	IPA	Translation	Note
a estante	/a isˈtɐ̃.tʃi/	the bookshelf, shelving unit	Feminine — typical in Brazilian living rooms
a cômoda	/a ˈko.mo.dɐ/	the dresser, chest of drawers	Feminine — for clothes, usually in the bedroom
o abajur	/u a.baˈʒuʁ/	the lamp, lampshade	Masculine — for a table or floor lamp
o tapete	/u taˈpe.tʃi/	the rug, carpet	Masculine — area rugs more common than wall-to-wall carpet in BR
a cortina	/a koʁˈtʃi.nɐ/	the curtain	Feminine — usually plural 'as cortinas' for a window set
o travesseiro	/u tɾa.veˈsej.ɾu/	the pillow	Masculine — for sleeping; 'almofada' is the decorative one

Useful chunks

Word	Translation
na sala tem um sofá	in the living room there is a sofa
no quarto tem uma cama	in the bedroom there is a bed

Pronunciation: Two tricky words here: (1) 'geladeira' — /ʒe.laˈdej.ɾɐ/ — starts with the soft 'zh' sound like the 's' in 'pleasure'. Not 'gel-a-deira' with a hard 'g'! (2) 'fogão' has the famous BR nasal diphthong -ão: /foˈɡɐ̃w̃/. Think 'fo-GOWn' said through your nose. Its plural 'fogões' /foˈɡõjs/ rhymes with 'lions' said nasally.

Grammar: Using 'tem' for describing what's in a room; plural of furniture nouns

'Tem' para descrever o que há em um lugar:
No Brasil, usamos 'tem' (forma do verbo 'ter' em 3ª pessoa) como 'there is / there are' — muito mais comum que 'há' na fala.

Português	Inglês
Na sala tem um sofá.	In the living room, there is a sofa.
Na cozinha tem uma geladeira.	In the kitchen, there is a fridge.
No quarto tem duas camas.	In the bedroom, there are two beds.
Não tem cadeiras.	There aren't any chairs.

Importante: 'tem' não muda para plural na fala brasileira — 'tem um sofá' / 'tem dois sofás' (formalmente 'há/têm', mas no dia a dia é só 'tem').

Plural dos móveis:
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| a cama | as camas |
| a mesa | as mesas |
| a cadeira | as cadeiras |
| o sofá | os sofás |
| o fogão | os fogões |
| o armário | os armários |
| o guarda-roupa | os guarda-roupas (só a segunda palavra muda) |

'Tem' — the Brazilian 'there is / there are'.

Formal Portuguese uses 'há' (from 'haver') for existence: 'Há um sofá na sala.' But in spoken Brazilian Portuguese, 'tem' — a form of 'ter' (to have) used impersonally — is overwhelmingly preferred.

Portuguese	English
Na sala tem um sofá.	In the living room, there is a sofa.
Na cozinha tem uma geladeira.	In the kitchen, there is a fridge.
No quarto tem duas camas.	In the bedroom, there are two beds.
Não tem cadeiras.	There aren't any chairs.

Important: 'tem' stays the same for singular and plural in spoken Brazilian: 'tem um sofá' and 'tem dois sofás' both use 'tem'. Formal written Portuguese might use 'têm' for plural, but you will rarely hear that.

Plurals of furniture nouns:
| Singular | Plural | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| a cama | as camas | add -s to vowel endings |
| a mesa | as mesas | add -s |
| a cadeira | as cadeiras | add -s |
| o sofá | os sofás | add -s (accent stays) |
| o fogão | os fogões | -ão → -ões (most common pattern) |
| o armário | os armários | add -s |
| o guarda-roupa | os guarda-roupas | only the second part changes |

Three plural patterns for -ão words:

-ão → -ões: fogão → fogões, lição → lições (most common)

-ão → -ães: pão → pães, cão → cães (small group)

-ão → -ãos: mão → mãos, irmão → irmãos (also small)

For A1, just learn each one when you meet it.

Exercises

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each sentence with the missing word.

Na sala um sofá e uma mesa.(there is / there are — spoken BR form)
O fogão é (broken / old).(old — match the gender of fogão)
Preciso de uma para dormir.(furniture item — for sleeping)
A fica na cozinha, onde gelamos a comida.(kitchen appliance — for keeping food cold)
O meu apartamento é (big) e luminoso.(adjective — big)

Grammar Application

Apply the plural rules and the 'tem' pattern.

Plural: a cadeira → (regular -s plural)
Plural: o fogão → (-ão → -ões)
Plural: o sofá → (vowel ending — add -s)
Complete: No quarto duas camas.(there is/are — BR spoken form)
Oposto de 'novo' → (opposite of 'new')

Translation (English → Portuguese)

Translate each sentence. Remember to use 'tem' for 'there is/are'.

In the living room there is a sofa.
I need a new fridge.
The table is old.
The kitchen has a stove and a fridge.
In the bedroom there is a bed and a wardrobe.

Creative Construction

Describe the furniture in two or three rooms of a home (real or imagined) using 'tem'.

Takeaway

Use 'tem' for 'there is / there are' in Brazilian Portuguese — it's more common than 'há'. 'Tem' doesn't change for plural in speech: 'tem um sofá' / 'tem dois sofás'. Plurals: most add -s; '-ão' endings usually become '-ões' (fogão → fogões).

Culture note: In most Brazilian apartments — especially in Rio and São Paulo — you'll find an 'área de serviço' (service area): a small utility room or corner with a tanque (laundry sink), a washing machine, and sometimes a clothesline hanging outside a window. It's where laundry happens, period. Clothes dryers are rare in Brazil — most people line-dry everything, even in apartments. The 'área de serviço' might also have a door to a separate 'quarto de empregada' (maid's room) in older buildings — a legacy of the domestic service era still visible in real estate listings.

Explanations in: de en