Conseguir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in Portuguese

conseguir — to manage — is one of the verbs you will use every day in Portuguese. It is a regular -ir verb, and it comes up in conversation, at work and at home. It means to manage to do something and to succeed, and it is a stem-change verb: the present eu form is consigo, with i, while the tu form keeps e — consegues, consegue, conseguimos, conseguis, conseguem. Its pretérito perfeito is consegui, conseguiste, conseguiu, and its participle is conseguido. It usually takes an infinitive after it. On this page you will find conseguir 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 conseguir conjugation page, and the deep dive into its most practised tense is on the conseguir pretérito perfeito tense page.

Example sentences with conseguir

In the present tense

  • “Eu consiguo terminar o trabalho todos os dias.” — “I manage to finish the work”
  • “Tu consegues terminar o trabalho todos os dias.” — “You manage to finish the work”
  • “Ele consegue terminar o trabalho todos os dias.” — “He manages to finish the work”
  • “Nós conseguimos terminar o trabalho todos os dias.” — “We manage to finish the work”
  • “Vós conseguis terminar o trabalho todos os dias.” — “You manage to finish the work”
  • “Eles conseguem terminar o trabalho todos os dias.” — “They manage to finish the work”

In the pretérito perfeito

  • “Eu consegui terminar o trabalho ontem.” — “I managed to finish the work”
  • “Tu conseguiste terminar o trabalho ontem.” — “You managed to finish the work”
  • “Ele conseguiu terminar o trabalho ontem.” — “He managed to finish the work”
  • “Nós conseguimos terminar o trabalho ontem.” — “We managed to finish the work”
  • “Vós conseguistes terminar o trabalho ontem.” — “You managed to finish the work”
  • “Eles conseguiram terminar o trabalho ontem.” — “They managed to finish 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 conseguia terminar o trabalho antigamente.” — “I used to manage to finish the work”
  • “Tu conseguirás terminar o trabalho amanhã.” — “You will manage to finish the work”
  • “Ele conseguiria terminar o trabalho um dia.” — “He would manage to finish the work”
  • “É importante que nós consiguamos terminar o trabalho.” — “It is important that we manage to finish the work”
  • “Consegue terminar o trabalho!” — “Manage to finish the work!”

How conseguir is used

The first thing to know about conseguir is its core meaning: to manage. It means to manage to do something and to succeed, and it is a stem-change verb: the present eu form is consigo, with i, while the tu form keeps e — consegues, consegue, conseguimos, conseguis, conseguem. Its pretérito perfeito is consegui, conseguiste, conseguiu, and its participle is conseguido. It usually takes an infinitive after it. 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 conseguir keeps. The present eu form is consiguo, 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 conseguido, 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 conseguir does not do. It never appears as a bare infinitive after a subject pronoun — after eu you need consiguo, never conseguir. It never takes the wrong auxiliary in the perfect tenses: the pretérito perfeito composto is tenho conseguido, built with ter, and the other auxiliary does not belong here. And its participle conseguido is given in the masculine singular form in the tables, with agreement depending on the sentence, not on the verb table.

Conseguir in context

Eu consiguo terminar o trabalho todos os dias. Tu consegues terminar o trabalho todos os dias. Ele consegue terminar o trabalho todos os dias. Nós conseguimos terminar o trabalho todos os dias. That is a normal part of the routine, and that is why the present of conseguir is the first form worth learning. Each sentence uses a different person, so read them aloud and notice how the form changes — consiguo, consegues, consegue, conseguimos — while the meaning stays the same: to manage. Eu consegui terminar o trabalho ontem. Tu conseguiste terminar o trabalho ontem. Ele conseguiu terminar o trabalho ontem. Nós conseguimos terminar o trabalho ontem. That was a normal day, but it is exactly on days like this that the pretérito perfeito of conseguir 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 manage — 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 conseguir terminar o trabalho.”

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

The infinitive conseguir never takes a subject. After eu you need the conjugated present form consiguo.

2. Using the wrong person

✗ Wrong: “Eu consegues terminar o trabalho.”

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

consegues is the tu form, not the eu form. The eu form is consiguo — check the person before you write the form.

3. Using the present for a finished past action

✗ Wrong: “Eu consiguo terminar o trabalho ontem.”

✓ Right: “Eu consegui terminar o trabalho ontem.”

Ontem points to the past, so use the pretérito perfeito consegui here, not the present consiguo.

4. Mixing up the auxiliary

✗ Wrong: “Eu sou conseguido terminar o trabalho.”

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

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

Quiz: test yourself

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

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

    • A) consiguo
    • B) consegues
    • C) consegue
    • D) conseguimos

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

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

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

    • A) conseguias
    • B) conseguíamos
    • C) conseguíeis
    • D) conseguia

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

    • A) conseguiremos
    • B) conseguirei
    • C) conseguirás
    • D) conseguirá

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

    • A) conseguiria
    • B) conseguirias
    • C) conseguiríamos
    • D) conseguiríeis

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

    • A) conseguiras
    • B) conseguíramos
    • C) conseguira
    • D) conseguíreis

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

    • A) consigua
    • B) consiguas
    • C) consiguais
    • D) consiguamos

  8. What is the gerund of conseguir?

    • A) conseguindo
    • B) conseguido
    • C) conseguir
    • D) consiguo

  9. What is the past participle of conseguir?

    • A) conseguindo
    • B) conseguido
    • C) conseguir
    • D) consiguo

  10. What does conseguir mean in English?

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

Answer key

  1. B) consegues — the correct form is consegues. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  2. C) tenho conseguido — the correct form is tenho conseguido. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  3. D) conseguia — the correct form is conseguia. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  4. A) conseguiremos — the correct form is conseguiremos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  5. B) conseguirias — the correct form is conseguirias. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  6. C) conseguira — the correct form is conseguira. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  7. D) consiguamos — the correct form is consiguamos. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  8. A) conseguindo — the correct form is conseguindo. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  9. B) conseguido — the correct form is conseguido. The other options are other forms of the same verb.
  10. C) to manage — the correct form is to manage. The other options are other forms of the same verb.

Frequently asked questions

What does conseguir mean in English?

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

Is conseguir regular or irregular?

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

What are the gerund and past participle of conseguir?

The gerund is conseguindo and the past participle is conseguido. The perfect tenses use ter + conseguido.

Where can I see the full conjugation of conseguir?

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

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