I can say how old I am, that I have a brother or a sister, and that I'm hungry, thirsty, or in a hurry — and ask someone else the same.
Tenho: I have
Tenho: I have
Your age, what you have, and how you feel: in Portuguese, one verb does all of it.
Forms: tenho, tens, tem, temos, têm. O senhor, a senhora, and a name take tem; vocês, eles, elas take têm. In writing only the mark tells these two apart, so you choose between them instead of typing them.
Age takes ter, not ser: Tenho trinta anos. English says “I'm thirty” with be; Portuguese “has” years, and anos can't be left out. Ask Quantos anos tem? formally and Quantos anos tens? informally.
“I have”: Tenho um irmão, Tenho uma irmã. Here um and uma come ready-made with the noun; the rule comes later. The owner goes after the thing: o número da Ana (“Ana's number”).
States: ter fome, ter sede, ter frio, ter calor, ter sono, ter pressa, ter medo. English says “I'm hungry”, “I'm cold”, “I'm in a hurry” with be; Portuguese always uses ter + a noun. See the table.
The negative works as with ser: Não tenho pressa.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Sou trinta anos” — age takes ter.
• NOT “Tenho trinta” — anos can't be left out.
• NOT “Sou fome” — states take ter too.
• NOT “Eles tenho sono” — eles takes têm.
ter in the present tense
Only the ^ mark tells tem and têm apart, so you choose between them instead of writing them.
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | tenho |
| tu | tens |
| ele, ela, o senhor, a senhora, a Ana | tem |
| nós | temos |
| vocês, eles, elas | têm |
| + | Tenho sede. |
| − | Não tenho sede. |
| ? | Tens sede? |
States take ter
English says these seven with be (“I'm hungry”, “I'm cold”); Portuguese always uses ter.
| In English | In Portuguese | What to remember |
|---|---|---|
| I'm hungry | tenho fome | not “sou fome” |
| I'm thirsty | tenho sede | ter, not “be” |
| I'm cold | tenho frio | ter, not “be” |
| I'm hot | tenho calor | ter, not “be” |
| I'm sleepy | tenho sono | ter, not “be” |
| I'm in a hurry | tenho pressa | ter + a noun |
| I'm afraid | tenho medo | ter + a noun |
Lesson notes
Tenho: I have
Your age, what you have, and how you feel: in Portuguese, one verb does all of it.
Forms: tenho, tens, tem, temos, têm. O senhor, a senhora, and a name take tem; vocês, eles, elas take têm. In writing only the mark tells these two apart, so you choose between them instead of typing them.
Age takes ter, not ser: Tenho trinta anos. English says “I'm thirty” with be; Portuguese “has” years, and anos can't be left out. Ask Quantos anos tem? formally and Quantos anos tens? informally.
“I have”: Tenho um irmão, Tenho uma irmã. Here um and uma come ready-made with the noun; the rule comes later. The owner goes after the thing: o número da Ana (“Ana's number”).
States: ter fome, ter sede, ter frio, ter calor, ter sono, ter pressa, ter medo. English says “I'm hungry”, “I'm cold”, “I'm in a hurry” with be; Portuguese always uses ter + a noun. See the table.
The negative works as with ser: Não tenho pressa.
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Sou trinta anos” — age takes ter.
• NOT “Tenho trinta” — anos can't be left out.
• NOT “Sou fome” — states take ter too.
• NOT “Eles tenho sono” — eles takes têm.