Personal Infinitives After Impersonal

Imagine you are at a dinner party in Lisbon. You want to say it is important for everyone to taste the wine. You start with é importante (it is important). If you just say é importante provar o vinho, it sounds general. It is like saying "tasting wine is important for anyone." But you want your friends to do it. This is where you add the "personal" touch. You change provar to provarem. Now it is specific to them. The impersonal expression sets the stage. The personal infinitive identifies the actors. It keeps the sentence structure simple. You avoid using the word que (that) which often triggers the messy subjunctive mood. It is a cleaner way to speak. Think of it like a grammar traffic light. The impersonal phrase is the yellow light, and the personal infinitive is the green light for your subject. It is efficient and elegant.

1. 1Creating the personal infinitive is actually quite simple. You take the regular infinitive of any verb. Then, you add specific endings for each person. Here is the cool part: the first and third person singular have no ending. They look just like the regular infinitive.
2. 2For eu (I), use the infinitive: falar.
3. 3For tu (you, informal), add -es: falares.
4. 4For ele/ela/você (he/she/you), use the infinitive: falar.
5. 5For nós (we), add -mos: falarmos.
6. 6For vós (you all, formal/archaic), add -des: falardes.
7. 7For eles/elas/vocês (they/you all), add -em: falarem.
8. 8Yes, even native speakers find the vós form a bit old-fashioned. You will mostly use vocês and the -em ending. For regular verbs, these endings are the same as the future subjunctive. But don't let that confuse you! The context tells you everything. The endings are your compass.

Use this pattern when you have an impersonal expression followed by a specific subject. Common starters include é preciso (it's necessary), é fundamental (it's fundamental), or é melhor (it's better). If you are at work and tell your boss É fundamental terminarmos o projeto hoje, you are being clear. You used terminarmos because "we" are the ones finishing it. Use it when you want to avoid the word que. It is great for job interviews where you want to sound sophisticated. Use it when giving directions: É melhor vocês virarem à esquerda. It also works perfectly when ordering food for a group: É bom nós pedirmos agora. It clarifies the "who" without making the sentence heavy. It is like adding a name tag to an anonymous verb.

Do not use the personal infinitive if the subject is general. If you mean "Smoking is bad for health," use the impersonal form: É mau fumar. No one specific is smoking here. Also, avoid it if the subject of the infinitive is the same as the main verb. Wait, impersonal expressions don't have a subject! That is the point. However, if you use a personal verb like quero (I want), you just use the regular infinitive: Quero sair. You don't need Quero eu sair. That sounds silly. If there is no specific person involved in the action, keep it simple. If the whole world should do something, use the impersonal infinitive. Think of it like this: if you can't point a finger at the person doing the action, don't use the personal endings.

One big trap is forgetting the third person plural ending. Many learners say É preciso eles sair. That is wrong! It must be É preciso eles saírem. It sounds like nails on a chalkboard to a native. Another mistake is using it when you don't need it. Don't add endings to general statements. É bom bebermos água is fine if you mean "us," but É bom beber água is better for general health advice. Some people also mix it up with the subjunctive. They say É importante que nós falarmos. Nope! If you use que, you must use the subjunctive: É importante que nós falemos. It is one or the other. Choose the personal infinitive for a more modern, direct vibe. It is like choosing between a bike and a car. Both get you there, but one is much leaner.

The main rival of the personal infinitive is the que + subjunctive structure. You can say É necessário que vocês estudem or É necessário vocês estudarem. Both mean the same thing. The personal infinitive version is often preferred in European Portuguese. It feels slightly more direct. In Brazil, you might hear the subjunctive more often in speech. Another contrast is with the impersonal infinitive. É fácil aprender (General) vs É fácil vocês aprenderem (Specific to you). The difference is all about the target. One is a wide net; the other is a laser beam. Mastering this contrast is what moves you from intermediate to advanced. It shows you understand the nuances of the language.