Acabar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Portuguese

acabar — to finish — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Portuguese. It is a regular -ar verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to finish and to end, and it is completely regular: acabo, acabas, acaba, acabamos, acabais, acabam. Its pretérito perfeito is acabei, acabaste, acabou, and its participle is acabado. It is also used in acabar de plus an infinitive, meaning to have just done something. On this page you will find acabar in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself. The full conjugation tables are on the acabar conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the acabar present tense page.

Example sentences with acabar

In the present tense

  • “Eu acabo o trabalho todos os dias.” — “I finish the work”
  • “Tu acabas o trabalho todos os dias.” — “You finish the work”
  • “Ele acaba o trabalho todos os dias.” — “He finishes the work”
  • “Nós acabamos o trabalho todos os dias.” — “We finish the work”
  • “Vós acabais o trabalho todos os dias.” — “You finish the work”
  • “Eles acabam o trabalho todos os dias.” — “They finish the work”

In the pretérito perfeito

  • “Eu acabei o trabalho ontem.” — “I finished the work”
  • “Tu acabaste o trabalho ontem.” — “You finished the work”
  • “Ele acabou o trabalho ontem.” — “He finished the work”
  • “Nós acabámos o trabalho ontem.” — “We finished the work”
  • “Vós acabastes o trabalho ontem.” — “You finished the work”
  • “Eles acabaram o trabalho ontem.” — “They finished the work”

In other tenses

The same verb in the pretérito imperfeito, the futuro do presente, the futuro do pretérito, the presente do subjuntivo and the imperative — the tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “Eu acabava o trabalho antigamente.” — “I used to finish the work”
  • “Tu acabarás o trabalho amanhã.” — “You will finish the work”
  • “Ele acabaria o trabalho um dia.” — “He would finish the work”
  • “É importante que nós acabemos o trabalho.” — “It is important that we finish the work”
  • “Acaba o trabalho!” — “Finish the work!”

How acabar is used

The first thing to know about acabar is its core meaning: to finish. It means to finish and to end, and it is completely regular: acabo, acabas, acaba, acabamos, acabais, acabam. Its pretérito perfeito is acabei, acabaste, acabou, and its participle is acabado. It is also used in acabar de plus an infinitive, meaning to have just done something. In everyday speech it appears most often in the present and the pretérito perfeito, the two tenses on this page, because most of what we say is either what we do every day or what we have just done. Learn those two tenses first and the rest of the conjugation becomes a matter of adding forms one at a time. The second thing to know is the company acabar keeps. The present eu form is acabo, and it pairs naturally with the time words todos os dias and sempre for habits, and with agora for what is happening right now. The pretérito perfeito composto eu form is tenho acabado, and it pairs with ontem and esta semana for finished actions. When you learn a verb form, learn its time words with it, and choosing the tense becomes automatic. The third thing to know is what acabar does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after eu you need acabo, never acabar. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the pretérito perfeito composto is tenho acabado, built with ter, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle acabado is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Acabar in context

Eu acabo o trabalho todos os dias. Tu acabas o trabalho todos os dias. Ele acaba o trabalho todos os dias. Nós acabamos o trabalho todos os dias. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of acabar is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — acabo, acabas, acaba, acabamos — while the meaning stays the same: to finish. Eu acabei o trabalho ontem. Tu acabaste o trabalho ontem. Ele acabou o trabalho ontem. Nós acabámos o trabalho ontem. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the pretérito perfeito of acabar appears constantly: a finished action, a precise moment, and the story goes on. Compare these sentences with the present ones above: the verb changes tense, but the basic meaning — to finish — does not change. That is the difference between a habit and a finished event.

Common mistakes

1. Using the infinitive instead of a conjugated form

✗ Wrong: “Eu acabar o trabalho.”

✓ Right: “Eu acabo o trabalho todos os dias.”

The infinitive acabar never takes a subject. After eu you need the conjugated present form acabo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Eu acabas o trabalho.”

✓ Right: “Eu acabo o trabalho todos os dias.”

acabas is the tu form, not the eu form. The eu form is acabo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Eu acabo o trabalho ontem.”

✓ Right: “Eu acabei o trabalho ontem.”

Ontem points to the past, so use the pretérito perfeito acabei here, not the present acabo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Eu sou acabado o trabalho.”

✓ Right: “Eu tenho acabado o trabalho esta semana.”

acabar takes ter in the pretérito perfeito composto. The eu form is tenho acabado — the other auxiliary never belongs with this verb.

Quiz: test yourself

Ten questions on acabar across the tenses. Answers with explanations follow each question.

  1. What is the tu form of acabar in the Present indicative (presente)?

    • A) acabo
    • B) acabas
    • C) acaba
    • D) acabamos

  2. What is the eu form of acabar in the Pretérito perfeito composto?

    • A) tens acabado
    • B) tem acabado
    • C) tenho acabado
    • D) temos acabado

  3. What is the ele/ela form of acabar in the Pretérito imperfeito?

    • A) acabavas
    • B) acabávamos
    • C) acabáveis
    • D) acabava

  4. What is the nós form of acabar in the Futuro do presente?

    • A) acabaremos
    • B) acabarei
    • C) acabarás
    • D) acabará

  5. What is the tu form of acabar in the Futuro do pretérito?

    • A) acabaria
    • B) acabarias
    • C) acabaríamos
    • D) acabaríeis

  6. What is the eu form of acabar in the Pretérito mais-que-perfeito simples?

    • A) acabaras
    • B) acabáramos
    • C) acabara
    • D) acabáreis

  7. What is the nós form of acabar in the Presente do subjuntivo?

    • A) acabe
    • B) acabes
    • C) acabeis
    • D) acabemos

  8. What is the gerund of acabar?

    • A) acabando
    • B) acabado
    • C) acabar
    • D) acabo

  9. What is the past participle of acabar?

    • A) acabando
    • B) acabado
    • C) acabar
    • D) acabo

  10. What does acabar mean in English?

  • A) to ask for
  • B) to receive
  • C) to finish
  • D) to pay

Answer key

  1. B) acabas — the correct form is acabas. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) tenho acabado — the correct form is tenho acabado. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) acabava — the correct form is acabava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) acabaremos — the correct form is acabaremos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) acabarias — the correct form is acabarias. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) acabara — the correct form is acabara. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) acabemos — the correct form is acabemos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) acabando — the correct form is acabando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) acabado — the correct form is acabado. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to finish — the correct form is to finish. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does acabar mean in English?

acabar means “to finish”. You use it whenever you talk about to finish in Portuguese, in the present, the past and the future.

Is acabar regular or irregular?

acabar is regular. acabar is regular: every form follows the standard -ar endings, so once you know the pattern you can build every tense from the stem.

What are the gerund and past participle of acabar?

The gerund is acabando and the past participle is acabado. The perfect tenses use ter + acabado.

Where can I see the full conjugation of acabar?

On the acabar conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The acabar present tense page goes deeper into its most practised tense.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for acabar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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