A2 · The past
Imperfect (imperfeito)
Four irregular verbs in the whole tense — and it doubles as the polite « I would like ».
At a glance
- Remember
- The frame goes in the imperfeito.
- When
- Before the past
- The past
- Past linked to the present
- The present
- The future
- Completed in the future
The past — Something that happened, finished, and stays where it happened.
- Form
- (eu) falavaI used to speak
- Signal words
- antigamente
- todos os dias
- quando era criança
- Trap
- Wrong:Morava lá dez anos.Right:Morei lá dez anos.
Your turn
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The form
How the forms are built
Each row gives the meaning first, then the form in Portuguese. The colours show what changes from one form to the next.
stem (regular) stem (irregular) tense marker person ending
| I used to speak | (eu) falava |
| you used to speak | (tu) falavas |
| he used to speak, you used to speak | (ele, ela, você) falava |
| we used to speak | (nós) falávamos |
| you used to speak, plural and formal | (vós) faláveis |
| they used to speak, you all used to speak | (eles, elas, vocês) falavam |
| I used to eat | (eu) comia |
| you used to eat | (tu) comias |
| he used to eat, you used to eat | (ele, ela, você) comia |
| we used to eat | (nós) comíamos |
| you used to eat, plural and formal | (vós) comíeis |
| they used to eat, you all used to eat | (eles, elas, vocês) comiam |
| I was | (eu) era |
| you were | (tu) eras |
| he was, you were | (ele, ela, você) era |
| we were | (nós) éramos |
| you were, plural and formal | (vós) éreis |
| they were, you all were | (eles, elas, vocês) eram |
| I had | (eu) tinha |
| you had | (tu) tinhas |
| he had, you had | (ele, ela, você) tinha |
| we had | (nós) tínhamos |
| you had, plural and formal | (vós) tínheis |
| they had, you all had | (eles, elas, vocês) tinham |
| I came | (eu) vinha |
| you came | (tu) vinhas |
| he came, you came | (ele, ela, você) vinha |
| we came | (nós) vínhamos |
| you came, plural and formal | (vós) vínheis |
| they came, you all came | (eles, elas, vocês) vinham |
| I put | (eu) punha |
| you put | (tu) punhas |
| he put, you put | (ele, ela, você) punha |
| we put | (nós) púnhamos |
| you put, plural and formal | (vós) púnheis |
| they put, you all put | (eles, elas, vocês) punham |
| I would like a coffee | queria um café |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
For habits in the past.
Quando era criança, ia à praia todos os dias.When I was a child I went to the beach every day.
For the frame something happens inside.
Chovia quando saí.It was raining when I went out.
Only four verbs are irregular.
Era tarde e estava frio.It was late and it was cold.
As a polite request: queria (and likewise the Condicional gostaria).
Queria a conta, por favor.I would like the bill, please.
Example sentences
Antigamente morávamos no campo.We used to live in the country.
Ele lia o jornal todas as manhãs.He read the paper every morning.
Estava a chover e não havia ninguém na rua.It was raining and there was nobody in the street.
Queria dois bilhetes, se faz favor.I would like two tickets, please.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
The imperfeito is not an « unfinished » past and has nothing to do with how long something lasted. Morei lá dez anos is correct and stands in the perfeito, although ten years is a long time — because the stretch is closed. Morava lá is « I used to live there », back then, as a matter of habit. English gives the same signal with « used to », so the test to apply is that one: if « used to » fits, the imperfeito fits.
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
For -ar: -ava, -avas, -ava, -ávamos, -áveis, -avam. For -er and -ir the same set: -ia, -ias, -ia, -íamos, -íeis, -iam.
It has four irregular verbs in the entire language: ser (era), ter (tinha), vir (vinha) and pôr (punha). Four, out of every verb there is — which makes this the friendliest tense in the language and a good one to be confident in early.
It stands for what used to happen (ia todos os dias), for the frame (chovia) and for what was going on when something else occurred. English divides that work between « used to », « would » and « was doing »; all three arrive here as one ending.
And it is the polite form for a request: queria um café — « I would like a coffee ». English uses a conditional there and Portuguese uses a past, which feels odd for about a week and then stops feeling like anything.
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The verbs on this page, in every form: ser · estar · querer · chover · fazer · haver · ir · sair