Portuguese Phrase
Você vende fita adesiva pra embalar?
Meaning
A polite, informal way to ask a shopkeeper if they sell adhesive tape that can be used for packaging items. The speaker is looking for a specific type of tape suitable for wrapping or sealing parcels.
When to use
Use this question in a store, market, or hardware shop when you need packing material. It works well in casual conversation with sales staff or a small‑business owner.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Vocêvendefitaadesivapraembalar?
Pronoun Você
Second‑person singular pronoun used in Brazil; conjugates verbs in third‑person singular.
Present Indicative – vender
‘vende’ is the 3rd‑person singular present form of vender (to sell).
Noun Phrase – fita adesiva
Compound noun meaning ‘adhesive tape’; adjective follows the noun in Portuguese.
Contraction pra
Informal spoken form of ‘para’; used before infinitives or nouns to mean ‘for/to’.
Infinitive – embalar
Verb in infinitive meaning ‘to pack/ to wrap’; follows the preposition ‘para/pra’.
🗨In Conversation
Você vende fita adesiva pra embalar?
Do you sell adhesive tape for packaging?
Sim, temos vários tipos. Qual largura você precisa?
Yes, we have several kinds. What width do you need?
✕Common Mistakes
Você tem fita adesiva pra embalar?
‘Tem’ asks if the store has the item, not specifically if they sell it; both are okay but change the nuance.
Você vende fita adesiva para embalar?
Using the formal ‘para’ is correct, but learners often forget the informal spoken contraction ‘pra’, which sounds more natural in casual conversation.
Você vende fita adesiva?
Leaving out ‘pra embalar’ makes the question too generic; the speaker wants tape specifically for packaging.
↔Alternatives
Você tem fita adesiva para embalar?
Do you have adhesive tape for packaging?
Vocês vendem fita adesiva para embalar?
Do you (plural) sell adhesive tape for packaging?
Tem fita adesiva para embalar?
Is there adhesive tape for packaging?
Cultural Tip
In Brazil, ‘fita adesiva’ is the standard term for what English speakers call ‘packing tape’ or ‘duct tape’. In more formal settings you might hear ‘fita de embalagem’. The contraction ‘pra’ is common in everyday speech, but in a very formal written request you would use ‘para’. Also, Brazilian shopkeepers often ask about the width (largura) or the type (transparent, colored) of tape you need.