Portuguese Phrase

Ele tá prestando atenção?

/ˈe.li ˈta pɾesˈtɐ̃.du a.tẽˈsɐ̃w/

Meaning"Is he paying attention?"

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Meaning

Literally: ‘Is he paying attention?’ The speaker is asking whether the male subject is currently focusing on what’s being said or done. It can be used both literally (e.g., in a classroom) and figuratively (e.g., checking if someone is listening to a story).

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When to use

Use this informal question in casual conversation with friends, family, or classmates when you want to confirm that someone is following the discussion. Avoid it in formal emails, presentations, or when speaking to authority figures; switch to the full form ‘Ele está prestando atenção?’ in those contexts.

✦Grammar Breakdown

Eletáprestandoatenção?

tá (informal está)

‘tá’ is the colloquial contraction of ‘está’, the third‑person singular of the verb ‘estar’, used in everyday spoken Portuguese.

Present progressive (estar + gerúndio)

The construction ‘estar + gerúndio’ (e.g., ‘está prestando’) expresses an action that is happening right now.

Gerúndio ‘prestando’

‘Prestando’ is the gerund form of ‘prestar’, which together with ‘atenção’ forms the idiom ‘prestar atenção’ – ‘to pay attention’.

Question intonation

In spoken Portuguese the rising intonation at the end of the sentence signals a yes/no question; the written question mark reinforces this.