Portuguese Phrase
Preciso de uma lanterna?
Meaning
The speaker is asking whether they need a flashlight, either to confirm a personal need or to ask someone else if a flashlight is required in the current situation.
When to use
Use this phrase when you are about to go somewhere dark, setting up a campsite, or checking equipment and you want to verify if a flashlight is necessary. It works both as a self‑question (thinking aloud) and as a polite request for confirmation from another person.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Precisodeumalanterna?
Preciso (verbo precisar)
‘Preciso’ is the first‑person singular present of ‘precisar’ (to need). It is used like ‘I need …’ and can be followed by the preposition ‘de’ plus a noun.
Preposição ‘de’
When ‘precisar’ expresses a need for something, it always takes the preposition ‘de’ before the object.
Artigo indefinido ‘uma’
‘Uma’ is the feminine singular indefinite article, matching the gender of ‘lanterna’.
Interrogativa sem inversão
Portuguese yes‑no questions often keep the normal word order; intonation or a question mark signals the interrogative.
🗨In Conversation
Preciso de uma lanterna?
Do I need a flashlight?
Sim, vai ser útil quando a energia acabar.
Yes, it will be useful when the power goes out.
✕Common Mistakes
Preciso uma lanterna.
The verb ‘precisar’ requires the preposition ‘de’ before the noun.
Preciso de um lanterna.
‘Lanterna’ is feminine; the article must be ‘uma’, not ‘um’.
Preciso de lanterna?
In most everyday contexts the indefinite article is needed; dropping it sounds unnatural.
↔Alternatives
Será que preciso de uma lanterna?
Do I really need a flashlight?
Eu preciso de uma lanterna.
I need a flashlight.
Preciso de lanterna?
Do I need a flashlight?
Cultural Tip
In Brazil, ‘lanterna’ usually refers to a handheld flashlight, while ‘lampião’ can mean a larger lantern used for outdoor lighting. When traveling to Portugal, you’ll also hear ‘lanterna’ for a small portable light, but ‘lanterna de mão’ is sometimes used to avoid confusion with decorative lanterns.