Amar Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Portuguese

amar — to love — 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 is the verb of loving a person, a place or an activity, and it is completely regular. It is the model verb many textbooks use for the -ar conjugation because every form follows the pattern exactly. On this page you will find amar 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 amar conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the amar present tense page.

Example sentences with amar

In the present tense

  • “Eu amo a Maria todos os dias.” — “I love Maria”
  • “Tu amas a Maria todos os dias.” — “You love Maria”
  • “Ele ama a Maria todos os dias.” — “He loves Maria”
  • “Nós amamos a Maria todos os dias.” — “We love Maria”
  • “Vós amais a Maria todos os dias.” — “You love Maria”
  • “Eles amam a Maria todos os dias.” — “They love Maria”

In the pretérito perfeito

  • “Eu amei a Maria ontem.” — “I loved Maria”
  • “Tu amaste a Maria ontem.” — “You loved Maria”
  • “Ele amou a Maria ontem.” — “He loved Maria”
  • “Nós amámos a Maria ontem.” — “We loved Maria”
  • “Vós amastes a Maria ontem.” — “You loved Maria”
  • “Eles amaram a Maria ontem.” — “They loved Maria”

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 amava a Maria antigamente.” — “I used to love Maria”
  • “Tu amarás a Maria amanhã.” — “You will love Maria”
  • “Ele amaria a Maria um dia.” — “He would love Maria”
  • “É importante que nós amemos a Maria.” — “It is important that we love Maria”
  • “Ama a Maria!” — “Love Maria!”

How amar is used

The first thing to know about amar is its core meaning: to love. It is the verb of loving a person, a place or an activity, and it is completely regular. It is the model verb many textbooks use for the -ar conjugation because every form follows the pattern exactly. 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 amar keeps. The present eu form is amo, 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 amado, 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 amar does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after eu you need amo, never amar. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the pretérito perfeito composto is tenho amado, built with ter, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle amado is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Amar in context

Eu amo a Maria todos os dias. Tu amas a Maria todos os dias. Ele ama a Maria todos os dias. Nós amamos a Maria todos os dias. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of amar is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — amo, amas, ama, amamos — while the meaning stays the same: to love. Eu amei a Maria ontem. Tu amaste a Maria ontem. Ele amou a Maria ontem. Nós amámos a Maria ontem. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the pretérito perfeito of amar 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 love — 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 amar a Maria.”

✓ Right: “Eu amo a Maria todos os dias.”

The infinitive amar never takes a subject. After eu you need the conjugated present form amo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Eu amas a Maria.”

✓ Right: “Eu amo a Maria todos os dias.”

amas is the tu form, not the eu form. The eu form is amo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Eu amo a Maria ontem.”

✓ Right: “Eu amei a Maria ontem.”

Ontem points to the past, so use the pretérito perfeito amei here, not the present amo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Eu sou amado a Maria.”

✓ Right: “Eu tenho amado a Maria esta semana.”

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) amo
    • B) amas
    • C) ama
    • D) amamos

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

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

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

    • A) amavas
    • B) amávamos
    • C) amáveis
    • D) amava

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

    • A) amaremos
    • B) amarei
    • C) amarás
    • D) amará

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

    • A) amaria
    • B) amarias
    • C) amaríamos
    • D) amaríeis

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

    • A) amaras
    • B) amáramos
    • C) amara
    • D) amáreis

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

    • A) ame
    • B) ames
    • C) ameis
    • D) amemos

  8. What is the gerund of amar?

    • A) amando
    • B) amado
    • C) amar
    • D) amo

  9. What is the past participle of amar?

    • A) amando
    • B) amado
    • C) amar
    • D) amo

  10. What does amar mean in English?

  • A) to be
  • B) to have
  • C) to love
  • D) —

Answer key

  1. B) amas — the correct form is amas. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) tenho amado — the correct form is tenho amado. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) amava — the correct form is amava. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) amaremos — the correct form is amaremos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) amarias — the correct form is amarias. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) amara — the correct form is amara. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) amemos — the correct form is amemos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) amando — the correct form is amando. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) amado — the correct form is amado. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to love — the correct form is to love. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does amar mean in English?

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

Is amar regular or irregular?

amar is regular. amar 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 amar?

The gerund is amando and the past participle is amado. The perfect tenses use ter + amado.

Where can I see the full conjugation of amar?

On the amar conjugation page — every tense, every person, with tables. The amar 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 amar, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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