interessar (a alguém)

Interessar Construction

Level 2

The verb interessar (to interest/matter) works by flipping the roles we use in English: the thing does the action of 'interesting' and the person is the object receiving that interest.

How It Works

The verb interessar is a versatile verb, but its most common usage follows a specific syntactic pattern:

  • The Subject: The item, idea, or situation that is interesting.
  • The Verb: Must agree with that subject (e.g., O livro interessa... vs Os livros interessam...).
  • The Object (Person): The person who feels the interest, often introduced by the preposition a or an indirect object pronoun.

Nuance of Meaning and Pronouns:
The choice of pronoun depends on the meaning you want to convey:
1. Transitive Indirect (VTI): Means something is relevant, useful, or important to someone. It requires the preposition a and uses the 3rd person pronouns lhe/lhes (e.g., 'Isso não lhe interessa' = That doesn't matter to him).
2. Transitive Direct (VTD): Means to capture the attention or attract someone. It does not use a preposition and uses the 3rd person pronouns o/a/os/as (e.g., 'O filme o interessou' = The movie caught his attention).

Note: While European Portuguese maintains a strict distinction between these pronouns, in spoken Brazilian Portuguese, pronoun usage is more flexible, and 'lhe' is often replaced by 'te' or 'você'.

Contrast with 'Interessar-se por/em':
Do not confuse this with the reflexive form interessar-se. In interessar-se por (or interessar-se em), the person is the subject (e.g., 'Eu me interesso por música'). In the interessar (a alguém) construction, the thing is the subject (e.g., 'A música me interessa').

Examples (5)

  1. Esta proposta não interessa ao diretor.

    This proposal does not interest the director.

    Word by Word: This proposal not interests to-the director.

    Here, 'proposta' is the singular subject, so the verb is 'interessa'. The director is the indirect object.

  2. Tudo o que dizes me interessa muito.

    Everything you say interests me a lot.

    Word by Word: Everything that (you) say me interests much.

    The subject is the clause 'Tudo o que dizes'. The person (me) is represented by the indirect pronoun 'me'.

  3. Essas notícias não lhes interessam.

    That news doesn't interest them.

    Word by Word: Those news not to-them interest.

    Notice the verb 'interessam' is plural to agree with the subject 'notícias'. It uses 'lhes' because the news is relevant to them (VTI).

  4. O brilho do ouro interessou o explorador.

    The shine of the gold caught the explorer's attention.

    Word by Word: The shine of-the gold interested the explorer.

    This is the Transitive Direct (VTD) usage, meaning to 'capture attention'. Note there is no preposition 'a' before 'o explorador'.

  5. A quem possa interessar.

    To whom it may concern.

    Word by Word: To whom (it) may interest.

    A common formal expression used in letters or documents.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the person as the subject without making the verb reflexive.

    Eu interesso esse livro.
    Esse livro me interessa. / Eu me interesso por esse livro.

    You cannot say 'I interest the book'. You must either make the book the subject or use the reflexive 'interessar-se por'.

  • Making the verb agree with the person instead of the thing.

    Me interessam o projeto.
    Me interessa o projeto.

    Even if 'me' (the person) feels like the focus, 'o projeto' is the grammatical subject, so the verb must be singular.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

interessar (a alguém)Level 2Interessar Construction

Learn This First

To use 'interessar' correctly, you need to understand how to conjugate regular -ar verbs and how to use indirect object pronouns or the preposition 'a' to indicate the person who is interested in something.

Words in This Pattern

interessar