- Forum >
- Topic: Portuguese >
- "A menina olha para a borbole…
19 Comments
In portuguese they are usually translated this way: look at = olhar (para) / look for = procurar
A better way to say the answer in english would be "looks at the butterfly". To use "to" is unnatural.
What is the difference between "a menina olha a borboleta" and "a menina olha para a borboleta"? Or are they pretty much the same?
436
I have trouble hearing the 'a' in 'a borboleta'. This happens often in Duolingo, in similar sentences - the articles tend to disappear. Would the 'a' be omitted in real conversation?
- 530
If I can look toward my house using the same expression, why can't the girl look toward the butterfly?
I agree. The only reason I put "toward" rather than "at" was someone had just looked "toward" a house.
This says the correct answer is "The girl looks to the butterfly." This is possible in English but is a strange way of saying this. We often say someone looks to [someone/something else] as an idiomatic way of saying that they, e.g. turn to them for advice, or seek them out for help. In other words, it's often used in a more metaphorical sense than a literal way of saying that they are visually looking at the target. "The girl looks at the butterfly" should be the primary answer indicated as correct.
