What Does ‘O Que É Que’ Do in Portuguese Questions?
O que é que adds an emphatic conversational frame around a question; it does not change the basic meaning of ‘what.’
Real Life Portuguese · 5 min read · Updated October 14, 2026
The short answer
Brazilian speakers use o que é que…? to introduce a question such as ‘what are you doing?’ The phrase makes the question sound conversational and can add focus to what follows.
Treat o que é que as a question frame
You can usually ask the same question with a shorter pattern. O que você está fazendo? and O que é que você está fazendo? both ask what someone is doing; the second has a fuller spoken frame.
O que é que você quer fazer hoje?
What do you want to do today?
O que é que aconteceu?
What happened?
O que você está procurando?
What are you looking for?
Recognize the informal shortened version
In casual speech, you may hear o que que…? The repeated que is a common spoken shape, but formal writing usually favors o que…? or o que é que…?.
Listen for the entire question rather than trying to translate each small word separately. If you are speaking as a beginner, the simple o que…? form is clear and widely useful.
O que que você pediu?
What did you order? (informal spoken form)
O que é que tem para fazer por aqui?
What is there to do around here?
O que você acha dessa ideia?
What do you think of this idea?
Put it into practice
Use o que…? as a simple question and recognize o que é que…? as a common conversational frame. Treat o que que…? as informal speech.
Quick practice
Which Portuguese example matches “What did you order? (informal spoken form)”?
Choose an answer to check yourself.
Keep practicing with the Real Life Portuguese app
Build on this guide with everyday expressions and native Brazilian audio. Choose iPhone, Android, or the web app.