Is the word los the same in Brazilian and European Portuguese?
No
The difference lies in typical usage and syntax. While the grammatical rule for forming the contraction (merging the object pronoun lo with the article os) is identical in both dialects, the way it is applied is very different. In Brazil, the construction "los" is considered highly formal or literary and is almost never used in everyday speech; Brazilians instead prefer to use the subject pronoun "eles" as a direct object (e.g., ver eles) or use proclisis (placing the pronoun before the verb, e.g., os vi). In Portugal, "los" is the standard and natural way to express this in both spoken and written language.
Brazilian Portuguese (Natural/Spoken)
- Eu vou ver eles no cinema. (I am going to see them at the cinema.)
- Você consegue chamar eles agora? (Can you call them now?)
- Eu não encontro eles na sala. (I can't find them in the room.)
- A gente vai buscar eles logo. (We are going to pick them up soon.)
- Eu preciso avisar eles da festa. (I need to tell them about the party.)
Continental Portuguese (Natural/Spoken)
- Eu vou vê-los no cinema. (I am going to see them at the cinema.)
- Consegues chamá-los agora? (Can you call them now?)
- Não os encontro na sala. (I can't find them in the room.)
- Nós vamos buscá-los logo. (We are going to pick them up soon.)
- Preciso avisá-los da festa. (I need to tell them about the party.)
vs
· BR vs PT Word Differences