When to use it
Use it at the end of a meal to ask the waiter for the bill. In Brazil you can also say "A conta, por favor".
“Could you bring the bill, please?” · The sentence in English
"Could you bring the bill, please?" is a polite request. "Could" is the past form of "can", and using it makes the request softer. After a modal verb the main verb, "bring", has no "to". "Please" at the end adds courtesy.
- Could
- auxiliary verbcan · form: conditional · modal verb; "Could you…?" is a polite request
- you
- pronounpersonal pronoun
- bring
- verbbring · form: base form (infinitive without "to") · after a modal verb the main verb has no "to"
- the
- determinerdefinite article
- bill
- nounnoun; the check at a restaurant
- please
- adverbpoliteness word
“Pode trazer a conta, por favor?” · The sentence in Portuguese
"Pode trazer a conta, por favor?" uses "pode", from "poder", in the present tense. The subject "você" is understood and left out, which is very common in Portuguese. "Trazer" is in the infinitive, "a conta" is the bill, and "por favor" means please.
- Pode
- auxiliary verbpoder · tense: present · mood: indicative · person: third · number: singular · "can"; used with "você" it makes a polite request
- trazer
- verbtrazer · form: infinitive · "to bring"
- a
- determinerdefinite article, feminine singular: "the"
- conta
- nounfeminine noun: "bill", "check"
- por
- prepositionpreposition; in "por favor"
- favor
- nounmasculine noun; "por favor" means "please"
What changes from one language to the other · English × Portuguese
English uses the softer "could", while Portuguese uses the present "pode" and relies on tone and "por favor" for politeness. Portuguese can drop the subject because the verb form already shows who acts; English must say "you". "Bill" and "conta" are both normal words for the check at a restaurant.
Example conversation
— Pode trazer a conta, por favor?
— Could you bring the bill, please?
— Claro, já trago.
— Of course, I'll bring it right away.