-o/-es/-e/-emos/-eis/-em

Present Tense -ER Verbs

Level 1

To conjugate regular -er verbs in the present tense, remove the -er ending and add: -o, -es, -e, -emos, -eis, -em.

How It Works

The present tense of -er verbs is one of the most common patterns in Portuguese. To use it, you take the 'stem' (the verb minus the -er) and attach the following endings:

Eu (I): -o (como)
Tu (You, informal): -es (comes)
Ele/Ela/Você (He/She/You): -e (come)
Nós (We): -emos (comemos)
Vós (You all, archaic/regional): -eis (comeis)
Eles/Elas/Vocês (They/You all): -em (comem)

Regional Differences:
In Brazil, você is the standard for 'you,' using the 3rd person singular ending (-e). Brazilians also frequently use a gente instead of nós, which also takes the 3rd person singular form. In Portugal, tu is very common in informal settings.

Spelling Changes:
Some verbs change their spelling in the Eu form to keep the sound consistent:

Verbs ending in -cer change c to ç (e.g., vencer → venço).
Verbs ending in -ger change g to j (e.g., proteger → protejo).

Examples (5)

Eu sempre bebo café de manhã.
I always drink coffee in the morning.
Word by Word: I always drink coffee of morning.
Shows a habitual action using the 'Eu' form (-o).
Ela come muito pão.
She eats a lot of bread.
Word by Word: She eats much bread.
Shows the 3rd person singular form (-e).
Nós vendemos a casa amanhã.
We are selling the house tomorrow.
Word by Word: We sell the house tomorrow.
Demonstrates the 'future present' nuance where the present tense is used for a scheduled future event.
Eles não comem carne.
They don't eat meat.
Word by Word: They not eat meat.
Shows a general truth using the 3rd person plural form (-em).
Você entende português?
Do you understand Portuguese?
Word by Word: You understand Portuguese?
Uses the 'Você' form, which takes the same ending as 'Ele/Ela' (-e).

Common Mistakes

Using -ar endings for -er verbs.
Ele coma muito.
Ele come muito.
Learners often mix up verb groups. 'Coma' is actually the subjunctive mood, not the standard present tense.
Confusing -er and -ir endings in the 'We' form.
Nós comimos pão.
Nós comemos pão.
For -er verbs, the 'Nós' ending is -emos. The ending -imos belongs to -ir verbs.
Dropping the nasal sound of the final -m.
Eles come (pronounced like 'come').
Eles comem (nasal 'em' sound).
In the plural 'Eles' form, the final -m must be pronounced as a nasal vowel. If you drop it, it sounds like the singular 'Ele come'.

How It Connects

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-o/-es/-e/-emos/-eis/-emLevel 1Present Tense -ER Verbs

Learn This First

To learn regular -er verb endings, you first need to be familiar with the subject pronouns that dictate which ending to use. Additionally, having already learned the -ar verb pattern makes it easier to understand the systematic nature of Portuguese verb conjugations.

-o/-as/-a/-amos/-ais/-amPresent Tense -AR Verbs
Familiarity with the -ar conjugation pattern provides the conceptual framework for how regular verb endings change based on the subject in the present tense.
Level 1

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

And 3 more in the full list.

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