Portuguese Gerund: Progressive Tenses and Beyond

The Portuguese Gerund (Gerúndio) is used to form progressive tenses (like the Present Continuous) and corresponds to the English present participle – the –ing form of verbs.

To form the Portuguese Gerund, simply replace the final -r of the infinitive with –ndo:

Infinitive	Gerund
pescar (fish)	pescando (fishing)
correr (run)	correndo (running)
sair (leave)	saindo (leaving)

This rule applies to all verbs, regardless of whether they are regular, irregular, or which conjugation group they belong to.

Besides progressive tenses, the Gerund can also express cause and effect, gradual change, simultaneity, and sequencing (especially in compound and complex sentences).

Understanding how to use the Portuguese Gerund will help you build more natural sentences and recognize common patterns in both written and spoken language. Read on.

⚠️ Portuguese vs. English Gerund

In English, the concept of ‘Gerund’ relates to a noun, not a verb (I love fishing). Where English uses the -ing form as a noun, Portuguese uses the Infinitive instead (adoro pescar).

The Portuguese Gerund – Gerúndio – corresponds to the English “Present Participle” as in I was fishing all day.

Progressive tenses: European vs Brazilian Portuguese

Progressive (aka Continuous) tenses express ongoing actions. In both European Portuguese (EP) and Brazilian Portuguese (BP), they’re formed with the auxiliary verb Estar, but the main verb form differs:

BP: Estar + Gerund
EP: Estar + a + Infinitive

We’ll compare the Present and Past Continuous.

🔎Learn more about how the Brazilian and European standards compare.

Present Continuous

In European Portuguese, the Present Continuous consists of the auxiliary verb Estar in the Present tense, followed by the preposition “a” and the main verb in the Infinitive.

In the Brazilian standard, on the other hand, the main verb is in the Gerund form:

(EP) O Artur está a comer o almoço.
(BP) O Artur está comendo o almoço.
Arthur is eating lunch.

Past Continuous

In European Portuguese, the Past Continuous is formed by the auxiliary Estar in the past (P. Imperfeito*) followed by the preposition a and the main verb in the Infinitive.

In the Brazilian standard, however, the Past Continuous is formed with the auxiliary Estar in the past and followed by the main verb in the Gerund:

(EP) A Ana estava a tomar um duche.
(BP) A Ana estava tomando um duche.
Ana was taking a shower.

🔎 * There are two Past tenses in Portuguese: Pretérito Perfeito vs. Imperfeito.

Beyond Progressive Tenses

Beyond ongoing actions, the Gerund is often used in place of conjunctions to express cause, result, gradual change, simultaneity, or sequencing.

If you have a good grasp of English, these uses will feel intuitive. Just like English uses the present participle in similar ways, Portuguese does the same with the Gerund.

Let’s look at examples.

Sequenced Actions

We often use the Gerund to link two actions that follow one another in quick succession:

Ele entrou no quarto e fechou a porta.
He came into the room and closed the door.

Now, let’s use the Gerund to express the same:

Ele entrou no quarto fechando a porta.
He came into the room, closing the door.

Here’s another example:

Ela pegou num livro e sentou-se no sofá para o ler.
She picked up a book and sat on the sofa to read it.

[with Gerund]
Ela pegou num livro sentando-se no sofá para o ler.
She picked up a book, sitting on the sofa to read it.

Change of Scene

We can also alternate between scenes:

Os morcegos estão ativos durante a noite e dormem durante o dia.
Bats are active during the night and sleep during the day.

[with Gerund]
Os morcegos estão ativos durante a noite dormindo durante o dia.
Bats are active during the night, sleeping during the day.

Sometimes we use the compound Gerund, which combines Tendo (the gerund of ter) with the past participle of the main verb:

Ela terminou todas as tarefas e foi para casa.
She completed all her tasks and went home.

[with compound Gerund]
Tendo terminado todas as tarefas, ela foi para casa.
Having completed all her tasks, she went home.

Cause and Effect

The Gerund can replace causal expressions:

A Elvira é culta e por isso é uma tutora competente.
Elvira is well-versed and therefore a competent tutor.

[with Gerund]
Sendo culta, a Elvira é uma tutora competente.
Being well-versed, Elvira is a competent tutor.

Another example:

Quando viu que não chovia saiu de casa.
When he realized it was not raining, he left home.

[with Gerund]
Vendo que não chovia, saiu de casa.
Realizing it wasn’t raining, he left home.

Yet again, sometimes we use the compound Gerund:

Ele foi dar um giro depois de comer o almoço.
He went for a walk after eating lunch.

[with compound Gerund]
Tendo já comido o almoço, ele foi dar um giro.
Having already eaten lunch, he went for a walk.

Gradual Change

The Gerund can also show gradual or progressive change when combined with the auxiliary Ir:

Os preços sobem todos os anos.
Prices go up every year.

[with ir + Gerund]
Os preços vão subindo de ano para ano.
Prices keep going up every year.

Another example:

A saúde dele ficou mais debilitada à medida que envelheceu.
His health got worse as he aged.

[with ir + Gerund]
A saúde dele foi ficando mais debilitada à medida que foi envelhecendo.
His health gradually got worse as he aged.

Simultaneous Actions (EP vs BP)

BP often uses the Gerund to show simultaneous actions. EP uses a + Infinitive instead:

(EP) O José jantou a ver a sua telenovela preferida.
(BP) O José jantou vendo a sua telenovela preferida.
José ate dinner while watching his favorite soap opera.

A couple more examples:

(EP) Um homem saiu de casa a gritar.
(BP) Um homem saiu de casa gritando.
A man ran out of his house screaming.

(EP) A Sónia magoou-se na perna a jogar futebol.
(BP) A Sónia magoou-se na perna jogando futebol.
Sónia hurt her leg while playing football.

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