Portuguese Phrase
Arruma meu quarto, por favor.
Meaning
The speaker is asking someone to tidy up their room, using a polite request. The imperative ‘arruma’ makes it a direct command, softened by the courteous ‘por favor’.
When to use
Use this phrase when you want a friend, family member, or roommate to clean up your room. It works in informal settings; for formal contexts you might use ‘arrume o meu quarto, por favor’ with the formal ‘você’ form.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Arrumameuquarto,porfavor.
Imperative Mood
‘Arruma’ is the affirmative imperative form of the verb ‘arrumar’ (to tidy up) for the second person singular (tu).
Possessive Adjective
‘meu’ means ‘my’ and agrees in gender and number with the noun ‘quarto’.
Polite Phrase
‘por favor’ is a polite expression meaning ‘please’, placed after the command.
Pronoun Placement
In affirmative imperatives, object pronouns (like ‘meu’ as a possessive) come before the verb, while ‘por favor’ follows the clause.
🗨In Conversation
Arruma meu quarto, por favor.
Please tidy up my room.
Claro, já vou começar.
Sure, I’ll start right away.
✕Common Mistakes
Arrume meu quarto, por favor.
‘Arrume’ is the formal imperative (você) and sounds too formal for casual friends; use ‘arruma’ for ‘tu’ or add ‘por favor’ to soften.
Arruma quarto meu, por favor.
Do not swap the order; ‘meu’ must precede the noun.
Por favor, arruma meu quarto.
Placing ‘por favor’ before the verb can sound overly formal; keep it after the command in informal speech.
↔Alternatives
Por favor, arrume meu quarto.
Please, tidy up my room.
Você pode arrumar meu quarto, por favor?
Could you tidy up my room, please?
Arrume o meu quarto, por gentileza.
Tidy up my room, please.
Cultural Tip
In Brazil, using ‘por favor’ after a command is common and makes the request sound courteous. However, the tone of voice matters; a friendly tone keeps it informal, while a softer tone is better with strangers or in a workplace. In Portugal, the formal ‘arrume’ (with ‘você’) is preferred in polite contexts.