Common Portuguese verbs: 25 verbs every beginner needs

🇵🇹 PortugueseA1–A225 words

A small set of verbs builds most of your first sentences. Learn ser and estar side by side, notice the difference between saber and conhecer, and get used to "estar a" plus an infinitive — the way Portugal says what is happening right now.

Where you will use it: Building your first sentences about daily life.

Common Portuguese verbs — The word list

Meanings and translations are in English.

Portuguese	Meaning and example
ser	To be (identity, permanent traits).“Eu sou professora.”I am a teacher.
estar	To be (states, location, temporary).“Estou cansado hoje.”I'm tired today.
ter	To have.“Tenho dois irmãos.”I have two brothers.
fazer	To do; to make.“O que fazes ao fim de semana?”What do you do at the weekend?
ir	To go.“Vou ao mercado amanhã.”I'm going to the market tomorrow.
vir	To come.“Vens jantar connosco?”Are you coming to dinner with us?
poder	Can; to be able to.“Posso abrir a janela?”Can I open the window?
querer	To want.“Queres um café?”Do you want a coffee?
saber	To know (facts); to know how to.“Sabes onde fica a estação?”Do you know where the station is?
conhecer	To know (people, places).“Conheces o Porto?”Do you know Porto?
dizer	To say; to tell.“O que disseste?”What did you say?
ver	To see; to watch.“Vimos um filme ontem.”We watched a film yesterday.
dar	To give.“Dá-me o teu número, por favor.”Give me your number, please.
ficar	To stay; to be located.“Hoje fico em casa.”Today I'm staying at home.
perceber	To understand.“Percebes o que ele diz?”Do you understand what he's saying?
gostar de	To like.“Gosto de caminhar na praia.”I like walking on the beach.
morar	To live (somewhere).“Moro em Coimbra.”I live in Coimbra.
trabalhar	To work.“Trabalho num banco.”I work in a bank.
comprar	To buy.“Comprei fruta no mercado.”I bought fruit at the market.
pagar	To pay.“Posso pagar com cartão?”Can I pay by card?
apanhar	To catch (transport); to pick up.“Apanho o comboio às sete.”I catch the train at seven.
beber	To drink.“No verão bebo muita água.”In summer I drink a lot of water.
dormir	To sleep.“Dormi muito mal esta noite.”I slept very badly last night.
precisar de	To need.“Preciso de ajuda com isto.”I need help with this.
estar a + infinitive	To be doing (action in progress).“Estamos a jantar, ligo-te depois.”We're having dinner, I'll call you later.

Tips for learning Portuguese words

Learn the article with the nounWrite o comboio or a paragem, not just the noun: the article tells you the gender, and adjectives agree with it.
Listen before you speakEuropean Portuguese swallows many unstressed vowels, so words sound shorter than they look. Play the audio and repeat each example aloud.
Type the accentsIn WordNest a missing accent counts as a mistake. Typing água, não and amanhã correctly from the start saves relearning them later.

European, not Brazilian Portuguese

Portugal and Brazil share one language but differ in everyday words, pronunciation and grammar: a train is a comboio in Portugal and a trem in Brazil, and "I am eating" is estou a comer rather than estou comendo. WordNest teaches the Portugal variety — example sentences, pronunciation and AI corrections all follow Portugal's norms.

Add five or six of these words a day rather than the whole list at once, keep the example sentence on the card, and review them when they come due. WordNest schedules each word across seven growing intervals — same day, then 1, 3, 7, 14, 30 and 60 days — so the list is still with you months later. Read how spaced repetition works if you want the reasoning behind those numbers.

European vs Brazilian Portuguese: 50 everyday words that differ →How to learn European Portuguese with WordNest →

Questions about this list

Is this European or Brazilian Portuguese?

European Portuguese, as spoken in Portugal. Where Brazil uses a different word, the list gives the Portugal one — for example comboio instead of trem.

How do I practise Common Portuguese verbs?

Start with five words, listen and say each example aloud. Then recall the Portuguese word from its English meaning and review it over several days.

How many words are in this list?

This list contains 25 words and phrases with English meanings and example sentences. It is a starting set, not a complete course.

Study these words with spaced repetition

Create a free account, choose Portuguese as a study language and add these words to your own deck.