Próclise, Mesóclise and Ênclise are words used in grammar lessons to describe the position of the adverb relative to the verb. In Brasil, Próclise is far more common than either of the other two, but in Portugal it’s the exception rather than the rule, These notes are taken from a Ciberdúvidas post.
Próclise
The pronoun goes before the verb
- After certain common adverbs such as bem, mal, ainda, já, talvez, apenas, também, não, sempre, só (according to Wikipedia, “Hoje” is a pronoun that fits this bill too, believe it or not!)
- Sempre o vejo
- Ainda me rio quando penso nisso.
- Hoje me convidarão para a solenidade de posse da nova directoria
- After indefinite subjects such as “ambos” or “alguns”
- Ambos o odeiam
- In subordinate clauses
- Quando a ouvi, não acreditei
- In coordinate clauses – basically where you’ve referred to a thing in a sentence already, then you use a conjunction like “and”, “but” or “or” to join to another clause where you refer to it again
- Ou tens o bolo ou o comes.
- Where the subject of the verb goes after the verb it wold be crowded to have the object pronoun there too
- Isso te digo eu
Mesóclise
The pronoun goes inside the verb like an insane pronoun sandwich, which seems… peculiar…. until you realise that it was originally because the future and conditional tenses were made up of the infinitive and a form of “havere” the version of latin that eventually became the portuguese language. Actually, it’s still peculiar, but knowing the reason behind it is some consolation, I suppose.
- Future tense [where none of the próclise conditions apply]
- Contar-lhe-ia uma história
- Comê-lo-ei
- BUT Quando sairmos do UE, não o arrependerá?
- Conditional tense
- Dar-lhe-ia
- BUT Se encontrasse Boris Johnson, nao lhe falaria
Ênclise
The pronoun goes after the verb
- Basically
- All
- Other
- Times
I went to the dentist today. I’d rather not talk about it.
Assuming the tooth-grinding term is as uncommon in Portugal as it is here, I bet this has caused a fair bit of confusion over the years. I’m imagining the dentist telling some catholic parents little João needs to be put to bed in a mouthguard because he’s engaging in bruxismo all night and them taking him straight to the priest for a swift exorcism.
Luso 