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Study Resource: Non-action verbs in Brazilian Portuguese

By: Ana Amélia Rodrigues dos Santos
Associated Articles

These activities are part of our Brazilian Portuguese Grammar series. The skills we are practicing here are covered in our article:

This table provides a few common non-action verbs in Brazilian Portuguese. Because these verbs typically describe permanent states or characteristics, they are often used in the simple present tense.

Non-action Verb
Example

ser

to be

Ele é brasileiro.

He is Brazilian.

estar

to be

João está atrasado.

João is late.

ficar

to be, to stay, to remain, to keep

A Bahia fica no Brasil.

Bahia is in Brazil.

andar

to be

Camila anda cansada.

Camila is tired.

permanecer

to remain, to stay

Ele permanece acordado durante o voo.

He remains awake during the flight.

continuar

to continue, to be still

O tempo continua bom.

The weather is still good.

tornar-se

to become

Este problema se torna ainda mais difícil.

This problem becomes even more difficult.

virar

to become

O menino vira uma fera.

The boy gets/becomes angry.

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