Portuguese Verb Conjugation: A No-BS Guide to Actually Understanding It

So you're learning Portuguese and someone just told you that each verb has over 50 different verb conjugations.

Cool. Cool cool cool.

Look, I'm not going to lie to you—Portuguese verb conjugation is a lot. The Portuguese language has more verb forms than English speakers are used to dealing with. But here's the thing: you don't actually need all 50 forms. Not even close. Native speakers stick to maybe a dozen conjugations in everyday conversation, and you can too.

This guide breaks down the basics of Portuguese conjugation—what actually matters, what you can ignore (for now), and how to conjugate Portuguese verbs without losing your mind. Consider this your Portuguese verb conjugator in written form.

The three verb groups (and why they're your best friends)

Every verb in Portuguese falls into one of three categories based on its infinitive ending:

Why does this matter for Portuguese conjugation? Because once you learn the pattern for one regular verb in each group, you can conjugate hundreds of others the same way. The stem stays the same—you just swap out the verb endings.

To conjugate a regular verb, you:

That's the formula for how verbs are conjugated in Portuguese. Master this, and you've cracked the code for the majority of verbs in Portuguese.

Present tense: where you'll live for a while

The present tense is where you'll spend most of your time as a beginner. Here are the verb endings for all three groups in the indicative present:

-AR verbs (like falar):

-ER verbs (like comer):

-IR verbs (like partir):

Notice something about these conjugation tables? The first person singular (eu) always ends in -o. Every single time. For every verb group. That's one less thing to memorize.

And here's a shortcut: the -ER and -IR groups have nearly identical endings. The only real difference is the nós form (-emos vs. -imos) and the vós form. Speaking of which—vós is basically archaic in modern Portuguese. You'll see it in old texts and maybe hear it in some rural parts of Portugal, but for practical purposes, you can skip it. Focus on the forms of the verb you'll actually use.

Quick note on Portuguese personal pronouns: tu is common in European Portuguese and some regions of Brazil, while você dominates in Brazilian Portuguese. The key difference? Tu takes its own unique conjugation (with that -s ending), while você uses the same conjugated form as ele/ela. More on this later.

Irregular verbs: the ones you actually need

Most verbs follow those nice, predictable patterns above. But the most commonly used verbs in Portuguese? Of course they're irregular. Because language loves to mess with you.

The good news: there aren't that many irregular verbs that really matter for daily conversation. And irregular doesn't mean completely random—most irregular verb forms follow their own internal logic once you see the patterns.

Here are the ones you need to master first:

Ser vs. Estar (the two "to be" verbs)

Portuguese has two verbs for "to be," and you need both. Here's the honest way to think about it:

Ser = defining characteristics (what something is) Estar = current states (how something is right now)

Examples:

The question to ask yourself: "Is this a defining characteristic, or could it change by tomorrow?" If it could change, use estar. If it's fundamental to identity, occupation, or permanent qualities, use ser.

Both ser and estar also function as auxiliary verbs in compound tenses—estar for progressive forms (estou falando = I am speaking), and ser for passive voice (foi escrito = it was written).

The other essential irregular verbs

Ter (to have): eu tenho, tu tens, você/ele/ela tem, nós temos, vós tendes, vocês/eles/elas têm

Ter is everywhere in Portuguese grammar. Beyond "to have," it's the main auxiliary verb for compound tenses like the pluperfect (tinha falado = I had spoken). You'll also hear haver used as an auxiliary in formal writing, but ter dominates in speech.

Ir (to go): eu vou, tu vais, você/ele/ela vai, nós vamos, vós ides, vocês/eles/elas vão

Fazer (to do/make): eu faço, tu fazes, você/ele/ela faz, nós fazemos, vós fazeis, vocês/eles/elas fazem

Querer (to want): eu quero, tu queres, você/ele/ela quer, nós queremos, vós quereis, vocês/eles/elas querem

Poder (can/to be able): eu posso, tu podes, você/ele/ela pode, nós podemos, vós podeis, vocês/eles/elas podem

Dar (to give): eu dou, tu dás, você/ele/ela dá, nós damos, vós dais, vocês/eles/elas dão

Fun fact about different tenses: ser and ir have identical conjugations in the simple past (pretérito perfeito). "Eu fui" means both "I was" and "I went." Context tells you which one. Portuguese is efficient like that.

Understanding verb tenses and moods

Before we go deeper into tense conjugation, let's talk about how Portuguese organizes its verb system. Every verb has different forms based on two things: tense (when the action happens) and mood (how certain/real the action is).

The three main moods:

Within each mood, you have different tenses covering past, present, and future. The indicative mood alone has present, preterite (pretérito perfeito), imperfect past (pretérito imperfeito), pluperfect, future (futuro), and conditional (condicional) tenses.

Sound like a lot? It is. But here's what matters for practical language learning: you can communicate 90% of what you need with just present tense, simple past, and the future tense hack I'll show you below.

Past tense: telling stories and talking about your day

Portuguese has multiple past tenses, but let's be real—you need two to start.

Pretérito perfeito (simple past)

For completed actions. "I ate." "I spoke." "I went." This is your workhorse past tense.

The verb endings for regular verbs:

-AR verbs: -ei, -aste, -ou, -amos, -astes, -aram -ER verbs: -i, -este, -eu, -emos, -estes, -eram -IR verbs: -i, -iste, -iu, -imos, -istes, -iram

Example with falar (present tense stem: fal-):

Notice that the nós form looks identical in present and past for -AR verbs. Context usually makes it clear which tense you mean.

Pretérito imperfeito (imperfect past)

For ongoing or habitual past actions. "I was speaking." "I used to speak." "I would speak (habitually)."

The good news? The -ER and -IR groups share the exact same endings in the imperfect. And the imperfect past has way fewer irregular verbs than the preterite—only ser, ter, vir, and pôr are truly irregular here.

-AR verbs: -ava, -avas, -ava, -ávamos, -áveis, -avam -ER/-IR verbs: -ia, -ias, -ia, -íamos, -íeis, -iam

Future tense: the hack that changes everything

Here's a secret about the future tense in Portuguese: you barely need to learn the simple future conjugations.

Native speakers, especially in Brazilian Portuguese, almost always use this construction instead:

Ir (conjugated in present) + infinitive

You already know how to conjugate ir in the present tense. So now you can talk about the future with any verb. Done.

The "proper" simple future does exist (Eu estudarei = I will study), and you'll encounter it in writing and more formal speech. But for everyday conversation? Ir + infinitive is the way to go.

The conditional: what would happen

The conditional mood expresses what would happen under certain circumstances. "I would speak." "She would go."

Good news: the conditional is formed by adding endings to the full infinitive (not the stem). And the endings are the same for all three verb groups:

Endings: -ia, -ias, -ia, -íamos, -íeis, -iam

The conditional often pairs with the imperfect subjunctive in "if...then" sentences: Se eu pudesse, viajaria pelo mundo. (If I could, I would travel the world.)

Some Portuguese grammar resources call the conditional the "futuro do pretérito" (future of the past), which is technically accurate but confusing. Just think of it as "would + verb" and you're good.

The subjunctive: less scary than it sounds

The subjunctive mood is for uncertainty, wishes, hypotheticals. Portuguese uses it more than English does, so you can't completely ignore it. But mastering Portuguese doesn't require perfect subjunctive usage from day one.

Here's the practical approach: learn the trigger phrases first.

When you see these, you need subjunctive (specifically the present subjunctive, or presente do subjuntivo):

Example:

The verb gostar shifts to goste because of the uncertainty introduced by "I hope."

The subjunctive has three tenses: present, imperfect (imperfeito do subjuntivo), and future (futuro do subjuntivo). The future subjunctive is actually still active in Portuguese, unlike in Spanish where it's basically dead. You'll hear it in sentences like Quando eu puder (When I can) or Se você vier (If you come).

For now, just recognize when subjunctive is needed. The verb forms will click as you encounter them in verb in context situations.

The personal infinitive: Portuguese's secret weapon

Here's something Portuguese has that basically no other language does: a conjugated infinitive called the infinitivo pessoal (personal infinitive).

Normally, infinitives don't change. "To eat" is "to eat" regardless of who's eating.

But Portuguese can add endings to infinitives to specify the subject:

The personal infinitive often replaces the subjunctive in everyday speech, which actually makes your life easier once you get used to it. It's a unique conjugation feature that doesn't exist in Spanish, French, or Italian.

Personal infinitive endings (added to the full infinitive): | eu | - (no change) | | tu | -es | | você/ele/ela | - (no change) | | nós | -mos | | vocês/eles/elas | -em |

Example: Antes de partirmos... (Before we leave...)

Brazilian Portuguese vs. European Portuguese conjugation

Quick note on the differences between these two main varieties.

Progressive tenses

The biggest grammatical difference is how progressive/continuous actions are expressed:

Brazilian Portuguese: Eu estou estudando. (estar + gerund with -ando/-endo/-indo) European Portuguese: Eu estou a estudar. (estar + a + infinitive)

Both mean "I am studying." Pick whichever matches the content you're consuming, and don't stress about it.

Tu vs. Você

In European Portuguese, tu is common with its proper second-person conjugation (tu falas, tu comes, tu partes).

In Brazilian Portuguese, você dominates and takes third-person verb forms. Even when Brazilians use tu colloquially, they often pair it with você conjugation (tu vai instead of the "correct" tu vais). This drives grammar purists crazy but is totally normal in casual speech.

Formality and pronoun usage

European Portuguese has more distinct levels of formality. Tu is informal, você is somewhat formal (though less used than in Brazil), and o senhor/a senhora are highly formal.

Brazilian Portuguese is generally more relaxed about this stuff. Você works in most situations, with o senhor/a senhora reserved for elderly people, professional settings, or when you want to be extra respectful.

If you've read our post on how long it takes to learn Portuguese, you know the most important thing is consistent exposure—not perfect grammatical formality from day one.

The participle: building compound tenses

The past participle (particípio passado) is used to form compound tenses with auxiliary verbs. Regular participles are formed by adding:

These combine with ter or haver for perfect tenses:

Some verbs have irregular participles: fazer → feito, ver → visto, escrever → escrito, abrir → aberto.

What to focus on first when learning Portuguese

If you're feeling overwhelmed by all these different forms, here's your priority list:

Everything else can wait. Seriously. You can communicate a ton with just these verb forms.

And honestly? The best way to learn to conjugate isn't drilling conjugation tables or using a Portuguese verb conjugator. It's hearing conjugated verbs in context, over and over, until they become automatic. The same way a native kid learns—by absorbing language from real content, not by memorizing charts.

We've talked about this approach in our guide to spaced repetition for language learning. Flashcards help, but only when they're connected to real sentences you've encountered. That's the way to learn that actually sticks.

Actually learning to conjugate Portuguese verbs

Here's the thing about Portuguese verb conjugation: you can read about tenses and moods all day, but it won't stick until you encounter it in actual Portuguese. Real conversations. Real shows. Real books. Seeing every verb in its natural habitat.

That's where Migaku comes in. The browser extension lets you watch Portuguese content—Netflix, YouTube, whatever—with instant word lookups and one-click flashcard creation. When you hear "eu fiz" in a show and don't remember what it means, you click it, see that it's the past tense of fazer, and can add it to your review deck right there.

Over time, you stop thinking about conjugation rules and verb tenses. You just know that "eu fiz" means "I did" because you've heard it fifty times in fifty different contexts. That's how native speakers learn, and it's way more effective than staring at conjugation tables trying to memorize verb forms.

Migaku also has a mobile app so you can review your vocab anywhere, and everything syncs automatically. There's a 10-day free trial if you want to see how it works with Portuguese content. If you're serious about mastering Portuguese conjugation—or any aspect of the Portuguese language—learning from real content is the path that actually works.

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