Common CELPE-Bras Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
The five mistakes that cost the most points on CELPE-Bras writing tasks — with examples, grader-style commentary, and corrections for each.
Dra. Carla Regiane Dias
PhD in Portuguese Philology · University of São Paulo
The mistakes that cost you the most points on the writing tasks are usually not grammar mistakes. Candidates walk in braced to be punished for every verb conjugation, but CELPE-Bras doesn't work that way.
Candidates lose far more points by failing to do what the task asked than by writing imperfect Portuguese.
A grammatically flawed text that nails the task often outscores a polished one that misses it. Learn to avoid these five mistakes and you'll protect more points than any amount of last-minute grammar drilling could earn you.
The examples below are representative and illustrative of recurring mistakes — not transcripts of any specific person's exam.
Mistake 1
Misreading what the task actually asks
Miss the genre, role, reader, or objective — and fail the task regardless of language quality.
Every CELPE-Bras writing task specifies four things: the action (what to write), your role (who you are), the interlocutor (who you're writing to), and the objective (what the text must achieve). Miss them, and you've written the wrong text.
Task: Write a letter to the mayor requesting more parks.
"As áreas verdes são muito importantes para a população. Elas melhoram a qualidade do ar, oferecem espaço para lazer e ajudam o meio ambiente. Toda cidade deveria ter mais parques, pois isso traz benefícios para a saúde das pessoas."
Grader's perspective
The Portuguese here is fine. But the task was not accomplished. This is a generic essay about the theme — no salutation, doesn't address the mayor, adopts no clear role, and makes no actual request. Three of the four required elements (role, interlocutor, objective) are simply absent.
"Excelentíssimo Senhor Prefeito, Na qualidade de moradora do bairro Jardim das Flores, venho por meio desta solicitar a criação de novas áreas verdes em nossa região. Atualmente, não dispomos de nenhuma praça ou parque onde as famílias possam se reunir e as crianças possam brincar com segurança. Diante disso, solicito que a Prefeitura avalie a possibilidade de destinar o terreno baldio da Rua das Acácias para esse fim."
Addresses the mayor (interlocutor), speaks as a resident (role), uses formal register, and makes a concrete request (objective). The task is fulfilled.
How to avoid it
Before writing a single word, force yourself to answer four questions: What am I writing? Who am I? Who am I writing to? What am I trying to achieve? Train this until it's automatic.
Mistake 2
Ignoring the source — or copying it
Not engaging with the source material, or lifting it word-for-word instead of transforming it.
CELPE-Bras writing tasks are integrated: you watch, listen, or read — then write a response that draws from that material. Candidates fail in two opposite ways: ignoring the source entirely, or copying it verbatim.
Source text contained: "Estudos recentes indicam que a ausência de áreas verdes está diretamente associada ao aumento de doenças respiratórias nos grandes centros urbanos."
"Estudos recentes indicam que a ausência de áreas verdes está diretamente associada ao aumento de doenças respiratórias nos grandes centros urbanos." (copied word-for-word)
Grader's perspective
A direct lift. It demonstrates reading recognition but not the ability to use information — which is exactly what the integrated task measures. It can also read as padding and doesn't earn the credit a transformed use would.
"Como mostra a reportagem, a falta de áreas verdes não é apenas uma questão estética: ela afeta diretamente a saúde da população, contribuindo para o aumento de problemas respiratórios. É justamente por isso que solicito uma ação urgente da Prefeitura."
The source's information is reworded, woven into their own argument, and pointed at their objective. That's the skill the task rewards.
How to avoid it
As you read or watch the source, ask "what here is useful for my purpose?" Then state it in your own words and connect it to what your text is trying to achieve. Select, reword, repurpose.
Mistake 3
Getting the register wrong
Using casual, conversational Portuguese where formal register is required — or vice versa.
Register is the level of formality — and matching it to the situation is part of accomplishing the task. A formal letter to a mayor or company demands formal Portuguese; using the casual Portuguese of everyday conversation signals you can't adjust your language to the social context.
Task: Write a formal letter of complaint to a company about a defective product.
"Oi, tudo bem? Então, gente, eu tô super chateado porque o produto que vocês me venderam quebrou em dois dias. Que absurdo, né? Vocês têm que resolver isso aí pra mim."
Grader's perspective
This communicates — but badly misjudges the situation. Oi, tudo bem, gente, tô, né, aí, pra — this is spoken, casual Portuguese aimed at a friend. The register mismatch signals the candidate can't yet adjust language to social context, a core proficiency the exam assesses.
"Prezados senhores, Venho por meio desta manifestar minha insatisfação com o produto adquirido em sua loja no dia 10 de março, o qual apresentou defeito após apenas dois dias de uso. Solicito a substituição do item ou o reembolso do valor pago, conforme prevê o Código de Defesa do Consumidor."
Same complaint, appropriate register — and notice it's also more effective as a complaint.
How to avoid it
Once you've identified your interlocutor, ask "formal or informal?" For authorities, companies, and strangers: always formal. Learn both registers and switch deliberately.
Mistake 4
Describing the topic instead of accomplishing the purpose
Writing about a subject rather than making the text actually do what it was supposed to do.
You can write something that looks like the correct text — a letter, an article — and still fail, because you merely described the topic instead of doing the job the text was supposed to do. The exam wants your text to act: to persuade, request, complain, propose.
Same letter to the mayor — correct genre and register, but the body reads:
"Os parques são muito importantes. Eles servem para o lazer, para a prática de esportes e para o convívio das famílias. As áreas verdes também são boas para o meio ambiente e para a saúde."
Grader's perspective
It's a letter, it's formal — but it's just describing why parks are nice. There's no actual request, no specific proposal, nothing that moves the mayor to act. The text describes; it doesn't do.
"Por essas razões, solicito formalmente que a Prefeitura destine o terreno baldio da Rua das Acácias à construção de um parque público, com área de lazer e espaço seguro para crianças. Tal medida beneficiaria diretamente as cerca de cinco mil famílias do bairro e poderia ser viabilizada já no próximo exercício orçamentário."
Now the text acts: a specific request, a concrete location, a justification aimed at persuading, and a call to action.
How to avoid it
After drafting, reread and ask: "Does this text actually do what it was supposed to do — or does it just talk about the topic?" Make the action explicit.
Mistake 5
Letting errors and disorganization break communication
Choppy, disconnected writing and errors that obscure meaning — not minor grammar slips.
Errors cost you when they impede communication. Small mistakes that don't obscure meaning are largely tolerated; errors and disorganization that make you hard to understand are penalized, because they damage the very thing the exam measures.
A candidate gets the right genre and register, but writes:
"Os parques são bons. As pessoas precisam de lazer. A cidade tem muita poluição. As crianças não têm onde brincar. Devemos fazer algo."
Grader's perspective
Every sentence is grammatically correct, yet the writing is weak — a list of disconnected statements with no flow, no logical linking, no argument being built. Good writing connects ideas; this just stacks them.
"Os parques são essenciais para a população, pois oferecem espaço de lazer e convívio. No entanto, em uma cidade com altos índices de poluição, eles cumprem um papel ainda mais importante: melhoram a qualidade do ar e oferecem às crianças um lugar seguro para brincar. Por isso, é urgente que o poder público invista na criação de novas áreas verdes."
Same ideas — now linked with pois, no entanto, por isso into a flowing, persuasive paragraph.
How to avoid it
Build cohesion with connectors (além disso, no entanto, portanto, por isso, pois, embora, dessa forma). Organize before you write. In your final read-through, hunt for errors that would confuse a reader — not every tiny imperfection.
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The pattern behind all five
Step back and look at the five mistakes together — misreading the task, mishandling the source, wrong register, describing instead of doing, and communication-breaking errors — and they share one root: they're all failures of communication and task, not failures of grammar.
CELPE-Bras is testing whether you can use Portuguese to accomplish real purposes for real readers. Candidates who understand that — who read the task carefully, use the sources, match the register, fulfill the objective, and write clearly enough to be understood — consistently outscore candidates with "better" Portuguese who treat the exam like a grammar test. Prepare for the exam it actually is, and these five mistakes become avoidable.
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Dra. Carla Regiane Dias
Founder of HappyPortuguese · PhD in Portuguese Philology, University of São Paulo (USP)
Carla has spent over twelve years preparing candidates for CELPE-Bras. This article is for guidance only — always confirm current exam format and requirements on the official INEP website (gov.br/inep) before registering.