Portuguese Phrase
Você pré-aquece a churrasqueira?
Meaning
The sentence asks whether the listener heats the grill in advance, a common step before placing meat on a churrasqueira for a Brazilian churrasco. It implies concern about reaching the right temperature for a good sear.
When to use
Use this question when you’re helping someone prepare a barbecue, when you’re a guest checking the host’s cooking routine, or when you’re learning cooking vocabulary in Portuguese.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Vocêpré-aqueceachurrasqueira?
Pronome de tratamento – Você
‘Você’ is the informal second‑person singular pronoun in Brazilian Portuguese; it triggers third‑person verb conjugation.
Verbo com prefixo pré‑
‘Pré‑aquecê‑‑‑’ is formed by adding the prefix ‘pré‑’ (meaning ‘before’) to the verb ‘aquecer’. The hyphen is mandatory in written Portuguese.
Conjugação – presente do indicativo
‘pré‑aquece’ is the 3rd‑person singular form of ‘pré‑aquecer’ (eu pré‑aqueço, tu pré‑aqueças, ele/ela/você pré‑aqueçe).
Formação de perguntas
In spoken Brazilian Portuguese a yes‑no question can be made simply by raising intonation after the statement; the written form keeps the subject‑verb order.
Artigo definido – a churrasqueira
The noun ‘churrasqueira’ (grill) is feminine, so it takes the definite article ‘a’.
🗨In Conversation
Você pré-aquece a churrasqueira?
Do you preheat the grill?
Sim, deixo o carvão aceso por 15 minutos antes de colocar a carne.
Yes, I let the charcoal burn for about 15 minutes before putting the meat on.
✕Common Mistakes
Você pré aquece a churrasqueira?
The prefix ‘pré‑’ must be attached with a hyphen; otherwise it looks like two separate words.
Você pré-aquecê a churrasqueira?
The infinitive is ‘pré‑aquecer’; the accent belongs to the ‘e’ of ‘aquecer’, not to the final ‘ê’.
Você pré-aquece o churrasqueira?
‘Churrasqueira’ is feminine, so the article must be ‘a’, not ‘o’.
↔Alternatives
Você aquece a churrasqueira antes de usar?
Do you heat the grill before using it?
Você já pré-aqueceu a churrasqueira?
Have you already preheated the grill?
É preciso pré-aquecer a churrasqueira?
Is it necessary to preheat the grill?
Cultural Tip
In Brazil a ‘churrasco’ is more than a meal; it’s a social ritual. Most hosts light charcoal and let the churrasqueira reach a high temperature (around 250 °C) before the first cut of meat. Skipping the pre‑heat can result in soggy meat and a less authentic flavor, so the question is a sign of culinary respect.