Portuguese · Upper intermediate (B2) · Chapter 2 of 12
Work in depth
O trabalho em detalhe
Negotiate at work in Portuguese: the imperfect subjunctive after queria que and pediu que, proposals with e se…, and softening with the conditional.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Use the imperfect subjunctive in all persons after a past or conditional verb
- Make a proposal with e se a gente…? and soften it with poderíamos or seria o caso de
- Negotiate prices, discounts, payment and delivery
- Move from o senhor / a senhora to você at the right moment
Listen
In São Paulo, Gilberto Pires, sales rep for a coffee cooperative in the south of Minas Gerais, negotiates a large order with Simone Tavares, purchasing manager of a chain of coffee shops. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Simone
Bom dia, senhor Gilberto. Obrigada por ter vindo até aqui. Eu li a proposta da cooperativa e gostei muito da qualidade do café.
Good morning, Mr Gilberto. Thank you for coming all this way. I read the cooperative's proposal and I really liked the quality of the coffee.
Gilberto
Eu que agradeço, dona Simone. Como a senhora viu, a gente pode fornecer vinte toneladas por ano para as suas lojas.
Thank you, Ms Simone. As you saw, we can supply twenty tonnes a year for your shops.
Simone
O café é excelente, mas o preço está acima do nosso orçamento. A diretoria queria que eu conseguisse um desconto de pelo menos dez por cento.
The coffee is excellent, but the price is above our budget. The board wanted me to get a discount of at least ten per cent.
Gilberto
Dez por cento é muito. A nossa margem já é pequena, e os produtores precisam de um preço justo. Seria o caso de pensar em cinco por cento, talvez?
Ten per cent is a lot. Our margin is already small, and the growers need a fair price. Perhaps we could think about five per cent?
Simone
E se a gente fechasse um contrato de dois anos, em vez de um? Com um pedido maior, o senhor poderia melhorar o preço?
And what if we signed a two-year contract instead of one? With a bigger order, could you improve the price?
Gilberto
Aí muda tudo. Com dois anos de contrato, a gente podia chegar a oito por cento. Mas eu pediria que o pagamento fosse feito em trinta dias, e não em noventa.
That changes everything. With a two-year contract, we could go to eight per cent. But I'd ask for payment to be made within thirty days, not ninety.
Simone
Trinta dias é difícil para nós. O nosso financeiro sempre pediu que os fornecedores aceitassem sessenta.
Thirty days is difficult for us. Our finance department has always asked suppliers to accept sixty.
Gilberto
Então vamos fazer assim: oito por cento de desconto e pagamento em sessenta dias, mas com entregas mensais. Assim a gente organiza melhor a produção.
Then let's do this: eight per cent off and payment in sixty days, but with monthly deliveries. That way we can organise production better.
Simone
Parece justo. Só que eu precisaria que vocês se comprometessem a cumprir os prazos de entrega. No ano passado, um fornecedor atrasou três vezes e ficamos sem café nas lojas.
That seems fair. But I'd need you to commit to meeting the delivery deadlines. Last year a supplier was late three times and we ran out of coffee in the shops.
Gilberto
Pode ficar tranquila: a cooperativa se compromete a entregar sempre até o dia cinco de cada mês. E, se a senhora me permite, pode me chamar de você.
Don't worry: the cooperative commits to always delivering by the fifth of each month. And, if you don't mind, you can call me “você”.
Simone
Combinado, Gilberto. E você também pode me chamar só de Simone. Então acho que a gente pode fechar negócio. Vou mandar a proposta final para a diretoria hoje mesmo.
Agreed, Gilberto. And you can call me just Simone too. So I think we can close the deal. I'll send the final proposal to the board today.
Gilberto
Ótimo. Foi um prazer negociar com você. Na próxima visita, eu trago uns pacotes do nosso café especial para a sua equipe provar.
Great. It was a pleasure negotiating with you. On my next visit, I'll bring a few packs of our speciality coffee for your team to try.
Understand
The imperfect subjunctive in all persons
You met the imperfect subjunctive after in B1 (). To form it, take the form of the preterite, remove -ram and add -sse: → , → , → , → . The form has an accent: .
Irregular verbs follow the same rule, so if you know the preterite you know this tense: → , → , → , → .
| Person | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| , , , | |||
| , , |
Sequence of tenses: quer que / queria que
When the verb that triggers the subjunctive (…) is in the present or the future, use the present subjunctive. When it is in the past or the conditional, use the imperfect subjunctive: → .
This is also how you make requests sound softer: is direct; is more diplomatic.
| Present / future → present subjunctive | Past / conditional → imperfect subjunctive |
|---|---|
Proposing and softening
+ imperfect subjunctive makes a suggestion without pressure: (What if we signed a two-year contract?). To soften a proposal, use the conditional () or, in speech, the imperfect (). + infinitive means “perhaps we should”.
In Brazilian business, people usually start with / and move to quickly, often by saying so: . Some people say before a woman's first name to show respect.
- E se vocês entregassem uma vez por mês?What if you delivered once a month?
- A gente podia rever o preço.We could look at the price again.
- Seria o caso de conversar com a diretoria.Perhaps we should talk to the board.
More in the grammar: The imperfect subjunctive
New words
- a diretoriathe board (of directors), management
- agradecerto thank · : Thank you. (in reply to thanks)
- fornecerto supply · : supplier
- acima deabove, over · : above our budget
- o orçamentobudget; quote · masculine
- o descontodiscount · masculine
- a margemmargin · feminine; : profit margin
- justo / justafair · : a fair price; : That seems fair.
- talvezmaybe, perhaps · + subjunctive before the verb:
- o pedidoorder · masculine
- cumprirto meet, to keep (a deadline, a promise)
- a entregadelivery · feminine; : to deliver
- comprometer-se ato commit to, to undertake to ·
- fechar negócioto close a deal
Practise
1.Complete: “Eles pediram que a gente … sessenta dias.”
2.Complete with the imperfect subjunctive of : “The board wanted me to get a discount.”
The board wanted me to get a discount.
3.Complete with the imperfect subjunctive of : “What if we placed a bigger order?”
What if we placed a bigger order?
4.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.What if we signed a bigger contract?
5.Match the Portuguese with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
6.Which is the most diplomatic way to ask for faster payment?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
E se a gente fechasse um contrato de dois anos?
What if we signed a two-year contract?
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.