protegêlos

Protegê-los is a Portuguese verb phrase formed when the verb proteger is used with a clitic pronoun referring to a plural object, literally meaning “to protect them.” It is not a standalone noun; rather, it is a grammatical construction common in Brazilian and European Portuguese. The standard, prescriptive spelling places a hyphen between the verb stem and the clitic: protegê-los. Without the hyphen, protegêlos appears in informal writing but is generally considered nonstandard in formal usage.

The clitic pronouns os (masculine or mixed gender) and as (feminine) attach to the infinitive form of the verb to indicate the object: protegê-los (to protect them, masculine or mixed) and protegê-las (to protect them, feminine). The pronoun is a clitic and typically follows the infinitive after a finite verb, in combinations such as poder, querer, precisar, desejar, or after prepositions that govern an infinitive: é necessário protegê-los, vou protegê-los, eles prometeram protegê-los; para protegê-los, de protegê-los, etc. The gerund form can also carry the pronoun: protegendo-os.

Usage notes: protegê-los signals that the action concerns a specified plural group and is tied to the preceding context. When referring to a mixed or masculine group, os is used; for exclusively feminine groups, as is used. In sentences with two verbs, the pronoun typically attaches to the infinitive or gerund rather than to the finite verb, which helps preserve standard word order and clarity in Portuguese syntax.