Artigo

Artigo is a Portuguese term with several related meanings. It can refer to a written piece published in a newspaper, magazine, or online; to a grammatical determiner used before a noun; or to a specific provision within a law, treaty, or contract.

From Latin articulus, through Old French article, the word historically signaled a joint or part of a whole, later extending to a component of a text and to a legally binding clause.

In Portuguese, articles are determiners that mark definiteness and gender. The definite articles are o, a, os, as; the indefinite ones are um, uma, uns, umas. They agree with the noun in gender and number and typically appear immediately before the noun (e.g., o livro, uma casa). Indefinite articles are used with singular count nouns; there is no plural indefinite article in standard Portuguese. Prepositional contractions are common: de + o = do, em + a = na, etc. Proper nouns normally do not take an article in standard Portuguese, though occasional regional usage may insert one for emphasis or idiomatic reasons.

Besides grammar, artigo also denotes a piece of writing in journalism or scholarship, such as an article in a newspaper or a scholarly article. An artigo de opinião expresses the author's view, while a artigo científico reports research findings. Length and style vary by publication.

In legal and administrative texts, the term artigo marks a numbered provision. For example, Artigo 5º of a constitution or statute identifies the specific rule. Articles are subdivided into parágrafos (paragraphs) and incisos (clauses) in many legal systems.