Present tense of regular verbs

The basic form of a verb, the “infinitive”, ends in -ar, -er or -ir: falar (to speak), comer (to eat), abrir (to open). To make the present tense, take off these two letters and add the ending for each person.

The -er and -ir groups differ only in the nós form: comemos, abrimos. The eu form always ends in -o.

Because você, o senhor, a senhora and a gente all take the ele form, and vocês takes the eles form, everyday Brazilian speech mostly needs three forms: eu falo, você fala (the same for ele, ela and a gente) and vocês falam (the same for eles and elas). The nós form is used in careful speech and writing; the tu form mostly in the South and in Portugal.

That's also why Brazilians usually say the pronoun: fala alone doesn't show who is speaking.

Some verbs change a letter in the eu form so that the sound stays the same. -cer becomes -ço: conhecer → conheço, esquecer → esqueço. -ger and -gir become -jo: proteger → protejo, dirigir → dirijo. The other forms are regular: conhece, dirige.

Verbs in -car and -gar, such as ficar and pegar, are completely regular in the present: fico, pego, pega. They change spelling only in some other tenses: fiquei, peguei.

Verbs in -ear add an i when the stress falls on the stem: passear → passeio, passeia, passeiam, but passeamos. In many -er verbs the stressed e or o is closed in the eu form and open in the others: bebo but bebe, corro but corre. Only the sound changes, not the spelling.

Most verbs are regular, including many you need every day. Some are used with a preposition: gostar de (to like), precisar de (to need).

The present tense is used for what is true now and for habits: Moro em Salvador. (I live in Salvador.) Almoço ao meio-dia. (I have lunch at midday.) For an action happening right now, Brazilians prefer estar + the gerund (the -ndo form): Estou comendo. (I'm eating.)

The present is also used for plans and arrangements, especially with a time word: Amanhã eu trabalho cedo. (Tomorrow I'm working early.) It's common for offers and quick promises too: Te ligo mais tarde. (I'll call you later.)

With há or faz + a period of time, the present means “have been doing”: Estudo português há um ano. (I've been studying Portuguese for a year.)