Learn Portuguese Grammar

Nouns name people (Maria), objects (livro – book), places (Lisboa – Lisbon), or ideas (liberdade – freedom). Every noun has a gender (masculine or feminine) and a number (singular or plural). Nouns also determine agreement for articles and adjectives.

Verbs express action, state, or occurrence and are highly inflected, changing form according to person, tense, and mood. Verbs can appear in moods such as indicative (facts), subjunctive (doubt or emotion), imperative (commands), and infinitive (general actions).

Adjectives describe nouns and must agree with them in gender and number. Adjectives usually come after the noun but can appear before it for emphasis or stylistic effect: “bela cidade” (beautiful city).

Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, indicating how, when, where, or to what degree something happens. Adverbs do not change form, and many are formed by adding -mente to the feminine adjective (rápida → rapidamente).

Pronouns replace nouns to avoid repetition and agree in gender and number. They can be: Personal, reflexive, relative and possessive and demonstrative. Pronouns often attach directly to verbs in Portuguese: ajuda-me! (help me!).

Prepositions show relationships between words, expressing direction, time, cause, or possession. Some prepositions combine with articles to form contractions: de + o = do, em + a = na. Example: Vou ao mercado. (I’m going to the market.)

Conjunctions connect words or clauses. They include coordinating conjunctions in Portuguese like e (and), mas (but), and ou (or) and subordinating conjunctions, such as porque (because), quando (when), and se (if).

Interjections express emotions or spontaneous reactions. They often stand alone and are very common in spoken Portuguese.

Articles introduce nouns and show whether they are specific or general. The definite articles o, a, os, and as mean “the,” while the indefinite articles um, uma, uns, and umas mean “a,” “an,” or “some.” Articles must always agree in gender and number with the nouns they accompany.

Determiners function like articles but add precision or quantity. They include demonstratives, possessives (meu, seu), quantifiers (muito, pouco), and indefinites (algum, nenhum). Determiners come before the noun and, like articles, affect adjective agreement.

Numerals indicate quantity (dois livros – two books), order (primeiro lugar – first place), or repetition (duas vezes – twice). They can act as adjectives, nouns, or adverbs, depending on context.

Particles are small words that add emphasis, emotion, or subtle meaning, often used in spoken language. Modal particles (e.g., lá, cá, bem, é que) emphasize actions, while focus particles (e.g., só, até, mesmo) highlight specific parts of a sentence.

In Portuguese, the standard word order is Subject–Verb–Object (SVO). However, this order can change for emphasis or rhythm, especially in spoken or literary contexts. Even when the word order shifts, verb conjugation and context usually make the meaning clear.

A clause is a group of words built around a conjugated verb. Main clauses can stand alone, while subordinate clauses depend on a main clause. Every complete Portuguese sentence must include at least one main clause, though it may also contain subordinate clauses to add detail or complexity.

Portuguese sentences serve different purposes. Declarative sentences make statements, interrogative sentences ask questions, imperative sentences give commands, and exclamative sentences express emotions. Each type conveys a different intention or tone.

Sentence structure in Portuguese depends on how clauses relate to each other. Simple sentences have one clause, compound sentences include two or more main clauses connected by a conjunction, and complex sentences combine a main clause with one or more subordinate clauses.

Indirect speech reports what someone said without quoting them directly. For example, in direct speech, you might say, Ela disse: “Eu vou viajar” (She said, “I’m going to travel”), while in indirect speech, it becomes Ela disse que ia viajar (She said she was going to travel). Tenses in reported speech often shift to match the timeline of the original statement.

In Portuguese, verbs must agree with their subjects in person and number. This rule is consistent and helps clarify who performs the action.

Conjunctions and linking adverbs connect ideas smoothly. Example: Estudei muito, por isso passei no exame. (I studied a lot, therefore I passed the exam.)

Portuguese punctuation is similar to English: period (.), comma (,), semicolon (;), question mark (?), and exclamation mark (!). Commas are used more frequently, especially to separate clauses. Quotation marks are usually “...”, though «...» appears in formal writing.

Extra or explanatory information can appear between commas, dashes, or parentheses.

Portuguese uses cleft structures to emphasize a specific element in a sentence, drawing focus or contrast.

Portuguese distinguishes between active voice (the subject performs the action) and passive voice (the subject receives the action). The passive voice appears more often in formal writing, while the active voice is preferred in everyday speech.

Portuguese verbs have non-finite forms that are not tied to a specific subject: the Infinitive, the Gerund which expresses ongoing action, and the Past Participle, used for compound tenses and passive voice.

Used to describe actions happening right now, habitual actions, or general truths. It can also refer to near-future actions when the time is clear.

Describes actions that were ongoing, repeated, or habitual in the past. It also sets the scene in storytelling.

Indicates actions that were completed in the past. It is common in both spoken and written Portuguese.

Describes an action that happened before another past action. It can appear in a simple or compound form.

Expresses actions that will happen in the future or probabilities about the present. In spoken Portuguese, the simple future is often replaced by ir + infinitive: Vou estudar amanhã. (I’m going to study tomorrow.)

Describes an action that will have been completed before a future point in time. Formed with ter/haver + past participle.

Expresses possibility, politeness, or hypothetical situations in Portuguese.

Used to express doubt, emotion, desire, or uncertainty. In Portuguese, it appears in several tenses: Present, subjunctive, imperfect and future subjunctive.

It’s used for commands, instructions, or invitations in Portuguese.

Common challenges for Portuguese grammar learners include gender confusion, verb tense mix-ups, and preposition errors. Another frequent issue is agreement — forgetting to match adjectives and verbs with their subjects or nouns. Small mistakes like these can change the meaning, but regular practice quickly improves accuracy.

In Portuguese grammar, words must agree in gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural). This rule gives sentences balance and clarity and is essential for fluent, natural expression.

Portuguese has many similar-looking words that can cause confusion. Learning their meanings and contexts helps avoid common mix-ups.

Plural formation in Portuguese follows several patterns, depending on word endings. Articles and adjectives must always match in number.

Portuguese word order is generally Subject–Verb–Object (SVO). However, flexibility is allowed for emphasis or rhythm, especially in spoken or poetic language. Verb conjugation and context make meaning clear even when word order changes.

Portuguese sentences are flexible but structured. Verbs often “frame” the sentence around the main idea, with non-finite verb forms (like the infinitive or participle) appearing near the end. Adverbs and objects usually fill the middle of the sentence, maintaining a natural rhythm and flow.

Negation is simple and direct: Just place “não” before the verb. Other forms include “nunca” (never), “jamais” (never/ever), and “nada” (nothing).

Portuguese questions can be formed in several ways: by using rising intonation in a statement, with question words such as Quem? (Who?), O que? (What?), and Quando? (When?), or through inversion of subject and verb, which is more formal or typical in writing.

Portuguese uses short confirming tags like: não é? (isn’t it?), né?, or tá? (casual, spoken forms).

Portuguese verbs convey actions through mood and voice. The three main moods are the indicative, the subjunctive, and the imperative. Additionally, the passive voice shows that the subject receives the action.

The subjunctive mood in Portuguese is used to express hypothetical or uncertain situations and includes three tenses: the present, the imperfect, and the future.

In Portuguese, a simple subject has just one noun or pronoun, while a compound subject includes two or more nouns joined by e or ou. The verb must always agree with the full subject.

A direct object receives the action directly, while an indirect object shows to or for whom something is done. Pronouns can replace these objects, as in Comprei-o (I bought it) and Dei-lhe o livro (I gave him the book).

Portuguese has many irregular verbs that change their stems or endings across tenses. Since these verbs are used frequently, mastering their irregular forms is essential for fluency.

Portuguese punctuation helps create clarity and a natural flow in writing. Commas are used to separate phrases and clauses, while periods and semicolons mark sentence endings or pauses. Quotation marks vary by region, using either “...” or «...». Unlike English, Portuguese uses commas for decimals (e.g., 7,5 euros), and punctuation marks like exclamation points and question marks are written without a space before them.