Portuguese Phrase
Tem caixa automática?
Meaning
Literally, ‘Do you have an automatic checkout?’ It is used when a customer wants to know if a store offers a self‑service cash register where they can scan and pay for items without a cashier’s assistance.
When to use
Use this phrase in supermarkets, hypermarkets, or any retail environment that might have self‑service kiosks. It’s a polite, concise way to ask a staff member about the availability of an automatic checkout lane.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Temcaixaautomática?
Ter (3ª pessoa singular)
‘Tem’ is the present‑tense form of ‘ter’ for ‘ele/ela/você’, used to ask about existence or possession.
Omission of the article
In questions about whether something exists, Portuguese often drops the definite article before the noun (e.g., ‘Tem caixa automática?’ not ‘Tem o caixa automática?’).
Adjective agreement
‘Automática’ agrees in gender and number with ‘caixa’, which is feminine singular, so the adjective must also be feminine singular.
Interrogative intonation
Raising intonation at the end of the sentence signals a yes/no question; the question mark reinforces this in writing.
🗨In Conversation
Tem caixa automática?
Do you have an automatic checkout?
Sim, está logo ali à esquerda, ao lado da padaria.
Yes, it’s right there on the left, next to the bakery.
✕Common Mistakes
Tem o caixa automática?
The definite article ‘o’ is not used before the noun in this existence question.
Tem caixa automático?
‘Caixa’ is feminine, so the adjective must be ‘automática’. Using the masculine form is a gender‑agreement error.
Tem caixas automática?
If you pluralize ‘caixa’, the adjective must also be plural: ‘automáticas’. Mixing singular and plural is incorrect.
↔Alternatives
Há caixa automática?
Is there an automatic checkout?
Existe caixa automática?
Does an automatic checkout exist?
Tem um caixa automático?
Do you have an automatic checkout (masculine noun form)?
Cultural Tip
In Brazil, self‑service checkouts are common in large supermarkets and hypermarkets, especially in urban areas. When asking, it’s courteous to start with a greeting like ‘Bom dia’ or ‘Com licença’. Remember that ‘caixa’ is feminine, so the adjective must be ‘automática’, not ‘automático’. In more formal settings you might say ‘O senhor(a) poderia me indicar onde fica a caixa automática?’ to sound extra polite.