Irregular Portuguese verbs
All 141, with their three forms, the English meaning and an example sentence each — sorted by what actually happens, not by the alphabet.
Why not alphabetical
The usual list has three columns in alphabetical order. You find something in it if you already know what you are looking for — for learning it is poor, because it hides the only order there is here. These verbs are not 141 separate cases. Most of them fall into groups in which the same change happens, and once you have the group, you have several verbs at once.
141 verbs.
Their own stem in the preterite
43 verbsThe biggest group and the one that pays off most. The preterite is built on a stem of its own — fiz, disse, trouxe — much as English has « did », « said » and « brought ». In Portuguese that stem goes further: with the third person plural, fizeram, it gives the past subjunctive (fizesse) and the future subjunctive (fizer), a form English has nothing like and Portuguese uses every day — quando puder, se fizer sol. Each head verb brings its family: everything in -ter goes like ter, in -por like pôr, in -vir like vir. A few verbs are filed here for a milder quirk in the same place: ficar, chegar and começar change a letter to keep a sound (fiquei, cheguei, comecei), and the verbs in -duzir have a regular preterite and only drop the final e in the present: conduz.
| Base form | Past | Participle | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| fazer | fiz | feito | to do, to make | A1 |
Fiz tudo o que podia.I did everything I could. | ||||
| dizer | disse | dito | to say, to tell | A1 |
Disse-lhe a verdade ontem.I told him the truth yesterday. | ||||
| trazer | trouxe | trazido | to bring | A2 |
Trouxe pão da padaria.I brought bread back from the baker’s. | ||||
| poder | pude | podido | can, to be able to | A1 |
Não pude vir ontem.I couldn’t come yesterday. | ||||
| querer | quis | querido | to want | A1 |
Quis dizer outra coisa.I meant something else. | ||||
| saber | soube | sabido | to know (facts), to know how to | A1 |
Soube ontem da notícia.I heard the news yesterday. | ||||
| ver | vi | visto | to see | A1 |
Vi-o na estação.I saw him at the station. | ||||
| vir | vim | vindo | to come | A1 |
Vim a pé.I came on foot. | ||||
| dar | dei | dado | to give | A1 |
Dei-lhe a chave.I gave him the key. | ||||
| ficar | fiquei | ficado | to stay, to become, to be (located) | A1 |
Fiquei em casa todo o dia.I stayed at home all day. | ||||
| chegar | cheguei | chegado | to arrive | A1 |
Cheguei às oito em ponto.I arrived at eight o’clock sharp. | ||||
| começar | comecei | começado | to begin, to start | A1 |
Comecei a trabalhar em março.I started work in March. | ||||
| ler | li | lido | to read | A1 |
Li o livro em dois dias.I read the book in two days. | ||||
| crer | cri | crido | to believe | B2 |
Nunca cri nessa história.I never believed that story. | ||||
| caber | coube | cabido | to fit | B1 |
Não coube tudo na mala.Not everything fitted in the suitcase. | ||||
| conduzir | conduzi | conduzido | to drive, to lead | A2 |
Conduzi durante seis horas.I drove for six hours. | ||||
| produzir | produzi | produzido | to produce | B1 |
A fábrica produziu mil peças.The factory produced a thousand parts. | ||||
| traduzir | traduzi | traduzido | to translate | B1 |
Traduzi o texto para alemão.I translated the text into German. | ||||
| reduzir | reduzi | reduzido | to reduce | B2 |
Reduziram o preço em dez por cento.They cut the price by ten per cent. | ||||
| desfazer | desfiz | desfeito | to undo, to unpack | B1 |
Desfiz a mala assim que cheguei.I unpacked my case as soon as I arrived. | ||||
| satisfazer | satisfiz | satisfeito | to satisfy | B2 |
A resposta não me satisfez.The answer didn’t satisfy me. | ||||
| refazer | refiz | refeito | to redo | B2 |
Refiz o trabalho todo.I did the whole piece of work again. | ||||
| rever | revi | revisto | to see again, to go over | B1 |
Revi o texto antes de enviar.I went over the text before sending it. | ||||
| prever | previ | previsto | to foresee | B2 |
Ninguém previu este resultado.Nobody foresaw this result. | ||||
| convir | convim | convindo | to suit, to be advisable | C1 |
Não me convém a essa hora.That time doesn’t suit me. | ||||
| intervir | intervim | intervindo | to intervene | C1 |
A polícia interveio rapidamente.The police stepped in quickly. | ||||
| provir | provim | provindo | to come from, to stem from | C1 |
A palavra provém do latim.The word comes from Latin. | ||||
| manter | mantive | mantido | to keep, to maintain | B1 |
Mantive a calma até ao fim.I kept calm until the end. | ||||
| obter | obtive | obtido | to obtain, to get | B1 |
Obtive a resposta na segunda.I got the answer on Monday. | ||||
| conter | contive | contido | to contain | B1 |
A caixa continha três livros.The box contained three books. | ||||
| deter | detive | detido | to detain, to stop | C1 |
A polícia deteve dois homens.The police arrested two men. | ||||
| reter | retive | retido | to hold back, to retain | C1 |
O banco reteve o pagamento.The bank withheld the payment. | ||||
| pertencer | pertenci | pertencido | to belong | B1 |
Esta casa pertenceu à minha avó.This house belonged to my grandmother. | ||||
| supor | supus | suposto | to suppose, to assume | B2 |
Supus que já sabias.I assumed you already knew. | ||||
| compor | compus | composto | to compose, to put together | B2 |
Compôs a música em duas semanas.He composed the music in two weeks. | ||||
| propor | propus | proposto | to propose, to put forward | B1 |
Propus outra data.I suggested another date. | ||||
| dispor | dispus | disposto | to have at one’s disposal | C1 |
Não disponho de tempo esta semana.I don’t have any time this week. | ||||
| impor | impus | imposto | to impose | C1 |
Impuseram novas regras.They imposed new rules. | ||||
| opor-se | opus-me | oposto | to oppose, to object to | C1 |
Opus-me à decisão desde o início.I opposed the decision from the start. | ||||
| caber-se | coube-me | cabido | to fall to (someone) | C1 |
Coube-me a mim decidir.It fell to me to decide. | ||||
| desdizer | desdisse | desdito | to take back (words), to retract | C1 |
Desdisse tudo no dia seguinte.He took it all back the next day. | ||||
| contradizer | contradisse | contradito | to contradict | B2 |
Contradisse-se três vezes.He contradicted himself three times. | ||||
| reaver | reouve | reavido | to get back, to recover | C1 |
Nunca reouve o dinheiro.He never got the money back. | ||||
The participle is irregular
28 verbsEverything is regular except the participle: abrir → aberto, escrever → escrito. In a story these verbs pass unnoticed, because the preterite gives nothing away; they show in every compound tense and in the passive. English keeps a list of the same kind — « written », « broken », « seen ». Many of these verbs have two participles: the short one goes with ser and estar (a luz está acesa, foi eleito), the regular one with ter (tinha acendido, tinham elegido). A few short forms — ganho, gasto, pago — are used with ter as well.
| Base form | Past | Participle | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| abrir | abri | aberto | to open | A1 |
Já abri a janela.I’ve already opened the window. | ||||
| cobrir | cobri | coberto | to cover | B1 |
A neve cobriu tudo.The snow covered everything. | ||||
| descobrir | descobri | descoberto | to discover, to find out | A2 |
Descobrimos um café pequeno.We discovered a little café. | ||||
| escrever | escrevi | escrito | to write | A1 |
Escrevi-lhe três cartas.I wrote him three letters. | ||||
| descrever | descrevi | descrito | to describe | B1 |
Descreveu a cena em detalhe.She described the scene in detail. | ||||
| inscrever-se | inscrevi-me | inscrito | to sign up, to enrol | B1 |
Inscrevi-me no curso de português.I signed up for the Portuguese course. | ||||
| ganhar | ganhei | ganho | to win, to earn | A2 |
Ganhámos o jogo por dois a um.We won the match two–one. | ||||
| gastar | gastei | gasto | to spend | A2 |
Gastei demasiado este mês.I’ve spent too much this month. | ||||
| pagar | paguei | pago | to pay | A1 |
Já paguei a conta.I’ve already paid the bill. | ||||
| aceitar | aceitei | aceite | to accept | B1 |
Aceitei o convite com prazer.I was glad to accept the invitation. | ||||
| acender | acendi | aceso | to light, to switch on | A2 |
Acendi a luz da cozinha.I switched on the kitchen light. | ||||
| prender | prendi | preso | to fasten, to tie; to arrest | B1 |
Prendeu o cabelo com uma fita.She tied her hair back with a ribbon. | ||||
| suspender | suspendi | suspenso | to suspend, to call off | C1 |
Suspenderam o voo por causa do vento.They suspended the flight because of the wind. | ||||
| eleger | elegi | eleito | to elect | B2 |
Elegeram-no no primeiro turno.He was elected in the first round. | ||||
| entregar | entreguei | entregue | to hand in, to deliver | B1 |
Entreguei o trabalho na sexta.I handed the work in on Friday. | ||||
| expulsar | expulsei | expulso | to expel, to send off | C1 |
Foi expulso do campo aos vinte minutos.He was sent off after twenty minutes. | ||||
| morrer | morri | morto | to die | A2 |
O meu avô morreu em janeiro.My grandfather died in January. | ||||
| salvar | salvei | salvo | to save, to rescue | B1 |
Salvaram três pessoas do incêndio.They rescued three people from the fire. | ||||
| romper | rompi | roto | to tear, to snap | C1 |
A corda rompeu-se de repente.The rope suddenly snapped. | ||||
| cobrir-se | cobri-me | coberto | to become covered, to cover oneself | B1 |
O céu cobriu-se de nuvens.The sky clouded over. | ||||
| encobrir | encobri | encoberto | to cover up, to conceal | B2 |
Tentaram encobrir o erro.They tried to cover up the mistake. | ||||
| imprimir | imprimi | impresso | to print | B1 |
Imprimi o contrato de manhã.I printed out the contract in the morning. | ||||
| exprimir | exprimi | expresso | to express | B2 |
Exprimiu-se com clareza.He expressed himself clearly. | ||||
| extinguir | extingui | extinto | to extinguish, to put out | C1 |
O fogo foi extinto ao amanhecer.The fire was put out at dawn. | ||||
| confundir | confundi | confuso | to mix up, to confuse | B1 |
Confundo sempre os dois irmãos.I always mix up the two brothers. | ||||
| soltar | soltei | solto | to let go of, to release | B1 |
Soltou a corda de repente.He suddenly let go of the rope. | ||||
| limpar | limpei | limpo | to clean | A2 |
Limpei a cozinha toda.I cleaned the whole kitchen. | ||||
| secar | sequei | seco | to dry | B1 |
A roupa secou ao sol.The washing dried in the sun. | ||||
The present is irregular
54 verbsHere the preterite and the participle are regular and the present is not — usually only in the first person singular: peço, durmo, sirvo. That one form matters more than it looks, because the whole present subjunctive is built on it: peça, durma, sirva. A small group works the other way round and changes the second and third persons instead: subo, sobes, sobe. The verbs in -cer write ç before o so that the c keeps its s sound: conheço, ofereço. And the verbs in -ear turn a stressed e into ei: passeio, receio.
| Base form | Past | Participle | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| pedir | pedi | pedido | to ask for, to order | A1 |
Pedi um café e um copo de água.I ordered an espresso and a glass of water. | ||||
| medir | medi | medido | to measure | B1 |
Medi a parede antes de comprar.I measured the wall before buying. | ||||
| ouvir | ouvi | ouvido | to hear | A1 |
Ouvi um barulho na rua.I heard a noise in the street. | ||||
| dormir | dormi | dormido | to sleep | A1 |
Dormi mal esta noite.I slept badly last night. | ||||
| servir | servi | servido | to serve | A2 |
Serviram o jantar às oito.They served dinner at eight. | ||||
| seguir | segui | seguido | to follow | A2 |
Segui a rua até ao fim.I followed the street to the end. | ||||
| conseguir | consegui | conseguido | to manage, to succeed in | A2 |
Não consegui abrir a porta.I couldn’t get the door open. | ||||
| preferir | preferi | preferido | to prefer | A2 |
Preferi ficar em casa.I preferred to stay at home. | ||||
| sentir | senti | sentido | to feel | A2 |
Senti frio a noite toda.I felt cold all night. | ||||
| mentir | menti | mentido | to lie (tell a lie) | B1 |
Mentiu-me duas vezes.He lied to me twice. | ||||
| vestir | vesti | vestido | to put on (clothes), to dress | A2 |
Vesti o casaco e saí.I put on my jacket and went out. | ||||
| repetir | repeti | repetido | to repeat | A2 |
Repeti a pergunta duas vezes.I repeated the question twice. | ||||
| subir | subi | subido | to go up, to climb | A2 |
Subi as escadas a correr.I ran up the stairs. | ||||
| fugir | fugi | fugido | to run away, to flee | B1 |
O gato fugiu pela janela.The cat escaped through the window. | ||||
| construir | construí | construído | to build | B1 |
Construíram a casa em oito meses.They built the house in eight months. | ||||
| sair | saí | saído | to go out, to leave | A1 |
Saí de casa às sete.I left home at seven. | ||||
| cair | caí | caído | to fall | A2 |
Caí na rua e magoei o joelho.I fell in the street and hurt my knee. | ||||
| trair | traí | traído | to betray | C1 |
Nunca traiu um amigo.He never betrayed a friend. | ||||
| rir | ri | rido | to laugh | A2 |
Rimos a noite toda.We laughed all night. | ||||
| sorrir | sorri | sorrido | to smile | A2 |
Sorriu quando me viu.She smiled when she saw me. | ||||
| perder | perdi | perdido | to lose, to miss | A1 |
Perdi o comboio das oito.I missed the eight o’clock train. | ||||
| valer | vali | valido | to be worth | B1 |
Não valeu a pena esperar.It wasn’t worth waiting. | ||||
| doer | doeu | doído | to hurt, to ache | A1 |
Doeu-me a cabeça o dia todo.I had a headache all day. | ||||
| agradecer | agradeci | agradecido | to thank | A2 |
Agradeci-lhe pela ajuda.I thanked him for his help. | ||||
| conhecer | conheci | conhecido | to know (people, places), to meet | A1 |
Conheci-a numa festa.I met her at a party. | ||||
| esquecer-se | esqueci-me | esquecido | to forget | A2 |
Esqueci-me das chaves outra vez.I forgot my keys again. | ||||
| parecer | pareci | parecido | to seem | A2 |
Pareceu-me estranho.It seemed strange to me. | ||||
| aparecer | apareci | aparecido | to appear, to turn up | B1 |
Apareceu sem avisar.He turned up without warning. | ||||
| acontecer | aconteceu | acontecido | to happen | A2 |
Aconteceu tudo muito depressa.It all happened very quickly. | ||||
| crescer | cresci | crescido | to grow, to grow up | B1 |
Cresci numa aldeia pequena.I grew up in a small village. | ||||
| descer | desci | descido | to go down, to get off | A2 |
Desci na paragem seguinte.I got off at the next stop. | ||||
| aquecer | aqueci | aquecido | to heat up, to warm | B1 |
Aqueci a sopa no micro-ondas.I heated up the soup in the microwave. | ||||
| adormecer | adormeci | adormecido | to fall asleep | B1 |
Adormeci no sofá a ver televisão.I fell asleep on the sofa watching TV. | ||||
| oferecer | ofereci | oferecido | to give (as a present), to offer | A2 |
Ofereceram-me um livro.They gave me a book. | ||||
| sofrer | sofri | sofrido | to suffer | B1 |
Sofreu muito no último ano.He suffered a great deal last year. | ||||
| destruir | destruí | destruído | to destroy | B1 |
O fogo destruiu duas casas.The fire destroyed two houses. | ||||
| incluir | incluí | incluído | to include | B1 |
O preço inclui o pequeno-almoço.The price includes breakfast. | ||||
| influir | influí | influído | to have an influence on | C1 |
O tempo influiu no resultado.The weather affected the result. | ||||
| possuir | possuí | possuído | to own, to possess | C1 |
A família possuía três casas.The family owned three houses. | ||||
| odiar | odiei | odiado | to hate | B1 |
Odiei esperar tanto tempo.I hated waiting so long. | ||||
| passear | passeei | passeado | to go for a walk | A2 |
Passeámos pela praia ao fim da tarde.We went for a walk along the beach in the early evening. | ||||
| recear | receei | receado | to fear, to be afraid | C1 |
Receio que seja tarde demais.I’m afraid it may be too late. | ||||
| vestir-se | vesti-me | vestido | to get dressed | A2 |
Visto-me e saio.I get dressed and go out. | ||||
| despir | despi | despido | to take off (clothes), to undress | B1 |
Despiu o casaco à entrada.He took off his coat at the door. | ||||
| divertir-se | diverti-me | divertido | to have fun, to enjoy oneself | A2 |
Divertimo-nos muito ontem.We had a great time yesterday. | ||||
| referir | referi | referido | to mention | B1 |
Referiu o assunto de passagem.He mentioned the matter in passing. | ||||
| conferir | conferi | conferido | to check | B1 |
Conferi as contas duas vezes.I checked the accounts twice. | ||||
| sugerir | sugeri | sugerido | to suggest | B1 |
Sugiro que falemos amanhã.I suggest we talk tomorrow. | ||||
| advertir | adverti | advertido | to warn | B2 |
Advertiram-nos do perigo.We were warned of the danger. | ||||
| engolir | engoli | engolido | to swallow | B1 |
Engoliu o comprimido sem água.He swallowed the pill without water. | ||||
| tossir | tossi | tossido | to cough | B1 |
Tossiu a noite toda.He coughed all night. | ||||
| desaparecer | desapareci | desaparecido | to disappear | B1 |
A chave desapareceu.The key has disappeared. | ||||
| permanecer | permaneci | permanecido | to remain | B2 |
Permaneceu calado a noite toda.He stayed silent all evening. | ||||
| merecer | mereci | merecido | to deserve | B1 |
Mereceu o lugar.He deserved his place. | ||||
Irregular throughout
16 verbsThe verbs no rule reaches: ser, ir, ter, pôr. They are the commonest in the language, and that is no accident — only what is said all the time can stay irregular without being forgotten. Two of them even share a preterite: fui is both « I was » and « I went », and only the sentence tells you which. Filed here as well are a few verbs whose only oddity is spelling — before an e the letter changes so that the sound can stay the same: almocei, brinquei, julguei.
| Base form | Past | Participle | English | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ser | fui | sido | to be (lasting) | A1 |
Fui professor durante dez anos.I was a teacher for ten years. | ||||
| estar | estive | estado | to be (for now, in a place) | A1 |
Estive em Lisboa na semana passada.I was in Lisbon last week. | ||||
| ter | tive | tido | to have | A1 |
Tive uma ideia melhor.I had a better idea. | ||||
| ir | fui | ido | to go | A1 |
Fui ao mercado de manhã.I went to the market in the morning. | ||||
| pôr | pus | posto | to put | A1 |
Pus a chave em cima da mesa.I put the key on the table. | ||||
| haver | houve | havido | there to be | A1 |
Houve um problema com o comboio.There was a problem with the train. | ||||
| acordar | acordei | acordado | to wake up, to wake (someone) | A2 |
Acordei antes do despertador.I woke up before the alarm went off. | ||||
| almoçar | almocei | almoçado | to have lunch | A2 |
Almocei às duas.I had lunch at two. | ||||
| abraçar | abracei | abraçado | to hug | B1 |
Abracei-a à despedida.I hugged her goodbye. | ||||
| esforçar-se | esforcei-me | esforçado | to make an effort, to try hard | B1 |
Esforcei-me muito este ano.I’ve worked really hard this year. | ||||
| brincar | brinquei | brincado | to play (as children do), to joke | A2 |
Brinquei com os miúdos toda a tarde.I played with the kids all afternoon. | ||||
| explicar | expliquei | explicado | to explain | A2 |
Expliquei tudo outra vez.I explained everything again. | ||||
| ficar-se | fiquei-me | ficado | to stop at, to settle for | B2 |
Fiquei-me por duas páginas.I stopped at two pages. | ||||
| julgar | julguei | julgado | to judge, to think | B1 |
Julguei que já tinhas saído.I thought you’d already left. | ||||
| apagar | apaguei | apagado | to switch off, to rub out | A2 |
Apaguei a luz da cozinha.I switched off the kitchen light. | ||||
| carregar | carreguei | carregado | to carry, to load | B1 |
Carreguei as malas até ao carro.I carried the cases to the car. | ||||
Practise the three forms
One base form, two missing forms. Only what you write counts — quotation marks, capitals and spaces are forgiven, not penalised.