Me, Te, O, and A: Direct Object Pronouns in Brazilian Portuguese
Object pronouns such as me and te receive an action: ela me chamou means ‘she called me.’
Real Life Portuguese · 6 min read · Updated October 14, 2026
The short answer
A direct object pronoun stands for the person or thing directly affected by a verb. In ela me chamou, me means ‘me’ and receives the action of calling. In eu te vi, te means ‘you’ and receives the action of seeing. The pronoun can save you from repeating a name or noun.
Identify who receives the action
Common forms include me, te, o/a, nos, and os/as. In Brazilian usage, me and te are very frequent before the verb. Forms o/a and os/as are more common in careful writing than in informal conversation, where speakers may repeat a name or use other constructions.
A professora me chamou depois da aula.
The teacher called me after class.
Eu te vi na saída.
I saw you at the exit.
Nós a encontramos perto do mercado.
We found her near the market.
Notice pronoun position and spoken variation
In many Brazilian sentences, an unstressed pronoun appears before the verb: me avisa, te espero, nos encontramos. Formal writing and some verb forms can use other placements, and regional speech varies. For practical listening, learn the common pre-verbal forms first and notice how a speaker uses them.
Keep a direct object separate from a subject pronoun. In eu te vi, eu performs the seeing and te receives it. If a sentence is difficult, identify the verb, ask ‘who did it?’ and ‘who or what received it?’ before translating.
Me avisa quando você chegar.
Let me know when you arrive.
A gente se encontra na estação.
We’ll meet at the station.
Pode me ajudar com esta mala?
Could you help me with this suitcase?
Put it into practice
A direct object pronoun receives the verb’s action: me chamou, te vi. In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, you will often hear me and te before the verb.
Quick practice
Which Portuguese example matches “I saw you at the exit”?
Choose an answer to check yourself.
Keep practicing with the Real Life Portuguese app
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