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How to Say ‘Where were we?’ in Portuguese

Onde é que nós íamos?

ON-deh eh keh nohs EE-ah-moosh

[ON-deh eh keh nohs EE-ah-moosh]

💬 Usage Tip: Word for word this is "where were we going?": íamos comes from ir "to go", not from a verb meaning "to be". The é que after onde adds no meaning and just makes the question sound natural and spoken. It works after other question words too: O que é que dizias? "What were you saying?"

Phrase Breakdown

Onde é que

ON-deh eh keh

Where (is it that)

'É que' is a very common emphatic filler in questions, so 'onde é que' just means 'where'. It flows as 'ON-di-É-k'.

Example

Onde é que moras?

Where do you live?

Words in this phrase

Onde

[ON-deh]

where

Interrogative used to ask about a place.

Example

'Onde' é o restaurante?

'Where' is the restaurant?

[eh]

is (in 'é que')

Part of the emphatic question filler 'é que'.

Example

O que é que queres?

What do you want?

que

[keh]

(that) — in 'é que'

Completes the emphatic 'é que', no direct translation.

Example

Quando é que chegas?

When are you arriving?

nós íamos?

nohs EE-ah-moosh

were we (going)?

'Íamos' is the imperfect of 'ir' (to go). The whole question means 'Where were we?', as when resuming a conversation. Stress the first syllable: 'NÓSH Í-a-mush'.

Example

Nós íamos à praia todos os dias.

We used to go to the beach every day.

Words in this phrase

nós

[nohs]

A pronoun used by a speaker to refer to himself or herself and one or more other people.

Example

Nós vamos ao cinema.

We are going to the cinema.

íamos

[EE-ah-moosh]

we were going

Imperfect of 'ir'; 'onde íamos?' = where were we (in the conversation)?

Example

Íamos à praia todos os dias.

We used to go to the beach every day.

Guides for Portuguese learners

The Portuguese You Actually Need in Your First Month in PortugalThe European Portuguese phrases for your first weeks in Portugal: paperwork, renting a flat, the bank, the health centre, cafés, trains and your new neighbours.

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