Conectores discursivos: contraste, consequência, adição
B2 writing and speech rise or fall on CONNECTORS — the little words that tell the listener whether what's coming is a contrast, a consequence, or another piece of the same idea. Portuguese has dense families of them, and the choice signals register: mas is everyday, no entanto and contudo are neutral-formal, todavia is bookish. Three families to master at B2: CONTRAST (no entanto, contudo, porém, todavia), CONSEQUENCE (portanto, por isso, assim, consequentemente), and ADDITION (além disso, ademais, ainda por cima). Plus the position rules — sentence-initial, mid-sentence between commas, or after a semicolon.
Contrast — no entanto, contudo, porém, todavia
All four mean essentially 'however / nevertheless' — a soft contrast between two clauses. Register and style differ: no entanto is the most common neutral choice, fine in speech and writing. contudo is slightly more formal but very common in journalism and essays. porém is older-feeling, common in literary and journalistic writing — slightly stronger than contudo. todavia is the most bookish — you'll see it in academic and legal writing, rarely in speech. Estudei muito; no entanto, não passei = I studied a lot; however, I didn't pass. A proposta era boa. Contudo, foi rejeitada = The proposal was good. However, it was rejected. Position: sentence-initial (followed by a comma), or mid-sentence between commas — A proposta, contudo, foi rejeitada. After a semicolon is also classic. mas is the everyday casual cousin — fine in speech, but in formal writing, prefer no entanto or contudo to avoid repetition.
Consequence — portanto, por isso, assim, consequentemente
All express 'therefore / so / consequently'. portanto is the standard neutral choice, equally at home in speech and writing — slightly more formal than English 'so'. por isso is the everyday spoken default — 'that's why / for that reason'. assim can mean 'thus / so' as a consequence connector (separate from its time/manner uses). consequentemente is heavy and formal, mostly written. logo is a tighter, often syllogistic 'therefore', favored in arguments and proofs. Está a chover. Portanto, vamos ficar em casa = It's raining. Therefore, we'll stay home. Não tinha dinheiro; por isso, não comprei = I didn't have money; that's why I didn't buy. Pensa, logo existe = He thinks, therefore he is (Cogito ergo sum). Position: usually after a comma or semicolon, sometimes mid-sentence: Não comprei, por isso, o livro is heavy; Não comprei o livro, por isso, fui à biblioteca is natural.
Addition — além disso, ademais, ainda por cima
These add another piece of evidence or argument. além disso = 'besides / in addition' — the workhorse, neutral, fine anywhere. ademais = 'moreover / furthermore' — formal, written register. ainda por cima = 'on top of that' — colloquial, often with negative coloring (piling on a complaint). também = 'also' — basic but flat; for sophisticated B2 writing, use além disso. A casa é cara. Além disso, fica longe = The house is expensive. Besides, it's far. Trabalhamos muito; ademais, ganhamos pouco = We work a lot; furthermore, we earn little (formal). O comboio atrasou-se e, ainda por cima, perdi a carteira = The train was late and, on top of that, I lost my wallet. acresce que is the formal 'add to that the fact that' — shows up in legal writing. Position: sentence-initial with comma, or mid-sentence between commas.
Position and punctuation
Most discourse connectors take commas. Three positions: (1) Sentence-initial, comma after: No entanto, ele veio. (2) Mid-sentence, commas around: Ele, no entanto, veio. (3) After semicolon, comma after: Estudei; no entanto, não passei. The semicolon position feels formal but classy — common in journalism and good prose. mas is the exception: it stays at the joint between clauses without surrounding commas: Estudei mas não passei (no comma) or Estudei, mas não passei (with comma — both fine). The bigger connectors (no entanto, contudo, portanto, além disso) want their commas — leaving them out reads as careless. Multi-word connectors (por isso, ainda por cima) follow the same rules as single-word ones.
Other useful B2 connector families
Beyond the big three, B2 writing benefits from: REASON: porque (because — most common), pois (for — slightly formal, post-clause), já que / visto que / uma vez que (since/given that — start a clause). PURPOSE: para que + conjuntivo (so that), a fim de que + conjuntivo (formal). CONDITION: se (if), caso + conjuntivo (in case), a não ser que + conjuntivo (unless). CONCESSION: embora + conjuntivo (although), mesmo que + conjuntivo (even if), apesar de + infinitive (despite). EXAMPLE: por exemplo (for example), nomeadamente (namely — very PT, formal). SUMMARY: em suma (in sum), em resumo (in short), por fim (finally — closing). REFORMULATION: ou seja (that is to say), isto é (that is), por outras palavras (in other words). At B2 you should be deploying 3-4 different connectors per paragraph in writing — repeating mas and e signals lower proficiency.
Register hierarchy and BR notes
From most casual to most formal: mas ≪ só que (just that) ≪ no entanto ≈ porém ≪ contudo ≪ todavia ≪ não obstante. e ≪ também ≪ além disso ≪ ademais ≪ acresce que. por isso ≪ assim ≪ portanto ≪ logo ≪ consequentemente. Pick by audience: a friendly text message uses mas and e; a B2 essay or work email uses no entanto and além disso; a legal opinion uses todavia and não obstante. PT and BR share virtually all of these forms. BR slightly prefers porém over contudo in journalism; PT slightly prefers contudo. ainda por cima is universal but most colorful in EP everyday speech. The crucial B2 move is breaking out of the mas/e/porque rut and rotating in the rest.
