Phrase · 🙇 Apologies & excuses
Não deu pra ir, tive que trabalhar até tarde.
I couldn’t make it, I had to work late.
B1explaining why you missed somethinginformalpt-BR-spAudio · coming soon
Why every word is where it is
nãoadverbnotdeu1verbit worked outdar · past · 3rd sing.pra1prepositiontoparairverbgoinfinitive,tive2verbI hadter · past · 1st sing.que2conjunctiontotrabalharverbworkinfinitiveatéprepositionuntiltardeadverblate.
- deu → ir: governs
- tive → trabalhar: periphrasis
- até → tarde: preposition
Word for word: “(It) not gave for to-go, (I) had that to-work until late.”
Why it's built this way
The notes match the numbers above.
- 1Não deu pra + infinitive = I couldn’t, it didn’t work out. Very common and softer than não pude.
- 2tive que = I had to: tive is the irregular perfeito of ter. Pretérito perfeito: irregular verbs →
Variations
- Não deu para ir, tive que trabalhar até tarde.
- Não consegui ir, fiquei trabalhando até tarde.
- Não pude ir porque tive que trabalhar.