Many learners assume the gerund is only used in Brazilian Portuguese. That is not true. In European Portuguese, the gerund exists, but it is used in more specific contexts. One very common use is to describe gradual change: a situation that developed little by little over time.
In this context, Portuguese often uses a natural structure with the verb ir in the pretérito perfeito, followed by the main verb in the gerund:
- ir in the pretérito perfeito + gerund
This construction highlights the progressive evolution of a situation, rather than a sudden change or just the final result.
Conjugation of ir in the pretérito perfeito
| eu | fui |
| tu | foste |
| você, ele, ela | foi |
| nós | fomos |
| vocês, eles, elas | foram |
How to form the gerund
Gerund forms in Portuguese are usually regular:
- verbs ending in –ar → drop –ar and add –ando
falar → falando - verbs ending in –er → drop –er and add –endo
comer → comendo - verbs ending in –ir → drop –ir and add –indo
partir → partindo
The gerund does not change for person or number.
Examples
- O trânsito foi piorando ao longo das semanas e agora está impossível.
- The traffic gradually got worse over the weeks and now it’s unbearable.
- Fui recuperando aos poucos e agora já me sinto em boa forma.
- I gradually recovered little by little and now I feel in good shape.
