Verb tenses · Brazilian Portuguese
Portuguese Imperfect (Pretérito imperfeito)
The imperfect is the past tense for what used to happen, what was going on, and how things were.
Quando eu era criança, eu jogava bola na rua. When I was a kid, I used to play football in the street.
- Used constantly in speech
- Level A2
- Same in Portugal
- -ar
- -ava -ava -ávamos -avam
- -er
- -ia -ia -íamos -iam
- -ir
- -ia -ia -íamos -iam
When to use the imperfect
Habits in the past: what you used to do.
A gente almoçava na casa da minha avó todo domingo.
We used to have lunch at my grandmother's every Sunday.
Descriptions in the past: people, places, weather, how things were.
Estava frio e a rua estava vazia.
It was cold and the street was empty.
Something that was going on when something else happened (which goes in the preterite).
Eu saía de casa quando começou a chover.
I was leaving the house when it started to rain.
Age and time of day in the past.
Eram dez horas e eu tinha vinte anos.
It was ten o'clock and I was twenty.
Polite requests, softer than the present.
Eu queria um café, por favor.
I'd like a coffee, please.
Often confused with the preterite.
Regular verbs
Every regular verb follows one of these three: -ar like falar (to speak), -er like comer (to eat), -ir like partir (to leave). The ending is in bold and underlined. Tu is used in parts of Brazil, and is shown last.
| Person | falar | comer | partir |
|---|---|---|---|
| eueu | falava | comia | partia |
| vocêvocê, ele, ela, a gente | falava | comia | partia |
| nósnós | falávamos | comíamos | partíamos |
| vocêsvocês, eles, elas | falavam | comiam | partiam |
| tuturegional | falavas | comias | partias |
Irregular verbs
The most common irregular verbs in the imperfect, most used first. Verbs built on the same one change the same way: learn ter and you know manter and obter. Irregular forms are marked (irregular).
ser
- euera (irregular)
- vocêera (irregular)
- nóséramos (irregular)
- vocêseram (irregular)
- tueras (irregular)
ter
- eutinha (irregular)
- vocêtinha (irregular)
- nóstínhamos (irregular)
- vocêstinham (irregular)
- tutinhas (irregular)
vir
- euvinha (irregular)
- vocêvinha (irregular)
- nósvínhamos (irregular)
- vocêsvinham (irregular)
- tuvinhas (irregular)
pôr
- eupunha (irregular)
- vocêpunha (irregular)
- nóspúnhamos (irregular)
- vocêspunham (irregular)
- tupunhas (irregular)
Any verb in the imperfect
How Brazilians use it
The imperfect instead of the conditional
In everyday speech Brazilians often use the imperfect where grammar books put the conditional: se eu tivesse tempo, eu ia (I'd go if I had time); eu adorava ir (I'd love to go). It sounds natural, not wrong.
Ia + infinitive: was going to
The imperfect of ir with an infinitive means “was going to”, for plans that may not have happened: eu ia te ligar, mas esqueci (I was going to call you, but I forgot).
In Portugal
The imperfect works the same way in Portugal.
Common mistakes
Not
Ontem eu ia ao cinema com a Ana.ButOntem eu fui ao cinema com a Ana.
A single, finished event at a definite time is the preterite. Ontem eu ia ao cinema means “yesterday I was going to go to the cinema”.
Not
Quando eu fui pequeno, eu morei no interior.ButQuando eu era pequeno, eu morava no interior.
Background and how things were in the past go in the imperfect: era pequeno, morava.
Not
Ele teva muito trabalho.ButEle tinha muito trabalho.
Only four verbs are irregular in the imperfect: ser (era), ter (tinha), vir (vinha) and pôr (punha).
Practise the imperfect
Ten questions on the most common verbs. Type the form; you'll see right or wrong at once.
Cheat sheet
The endings and the most common irregular verbs on one printable page.
Imperfect cheat sheet (PDF)Questions
When do you use the imperfect in Portuguese?
For past habits (eu jogava, I used to play), descriptions (estava frio, it was cold), and actions in progress when something else happened (eu dormia quando você ligou). Finished one-off events go in the preterite.
How do you form the imperfect in Portuguese?
For -ar verbs add -ava to the stem: falava, falávamos, falavam. For -er and -ir verbs add -ia: comia, partia, comíamos, comiam. Only ser, ter, vir and pôr are irregular: era, tinha, vinha, punha.
What is the difference between the preterite and the imperfect in Portuguese?
The preterite is for something finished (eu comi, I ate); the imperfect is for what used to happen or was going on (eu comia, I used to eat, I was eating).
How do you say “used to” in Portuguese?
With the imperfect: eu morava em São Paulo means “I used to live in São Paulo”. Costumava + infinitive also works: eu costumava correr de manhã (I used to run in the mornings).
Related tenses: the pluperfect, the gerund
See the imperfect in real books
Tables teach the forms; stories teach when to use them. Read Brazilian books and stories at your level, tap any verb for its meaning in that sentence, and press Listen to hear the page in a Brazilian voice.
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